MOBILE, Ala. - The University of South Alabama softball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday as the Jags fell 6-1 to eighth-seeded Middle Tennessee in the second round of the Sun Belt Conference Championships held at Jaguar Field.

The Jaguars closed out the season with a 21-24 record, while the Blue Raiders moved to 22-31 with the win.  MTSU also advances on in the bracket and will play the loser of the No. 6 Troy/No. 7 ULM contest.

Natalie Ysasis led MTSU going 2-for-3 at the plate, scoring a pair of runs and driving in three. Corrie Abel also contributed with a 2-for-4 performance and scored a run, while Jessica Ives finished with a pair of hits, two RBI and two runs scored.

Britany Campbell, Haley Hopkins, Meghan Collins and Kelsey Volz all went 1-for-3 at the plate for USA.

"We did not take advantage of our opportunities today," USA head coach Becky Clark said. "We had the bases loaded and we just didn't get it done. On day two, the pitchers are not as fresh as they were on day one, so you have to get more hits and we didn't do that. Overall, we had our ups and downs this season and there were a lot of bright spots. I feel like we definitely took a step forward this season in building a championship program."

The Jaguars took advantage of two Blue Raider errors in the top of the third when Volz - who singled to begin the inning - came in to give the Jaguars the early 1-0 advantage.

MTSU took the lead for good and broke things open in the bottom half inning, scoring four runs on five hits. Brittney Banania and Abel started the rally with two consecutive base hits. Catlin McClure and Ysasis then hit two back-to-back singles to drive in Bannania and Abel. The next batter, Ives followed with a two-run homer over the right field wall to give the Blue Raiders a 4-1 lead.

Middle Tennessee tacked on two more runs in the fifth when Ysasis homered over the left field wall driving in Abel, who had doubled to begin the inning.

Katy Neal came in for relief to get the final out of the fifth inning and pitching 1.1 innings to finish the game. Senior pitcher Beth Pilgrim (16-13) took the loss in 4.2 innings, allowing eight hits and six runs, while striking out four Blue Raider batters.

Linsdsey Vander Lugt (20-20) picked the win after going the distance in the circle, striking out 10 Jaguar batters and allowing four hits.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com.  Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

-USA-