SALEM, Va. - - Megan Dillion hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the first inning and Taylor Brandts pitched her third complete game of the tournament as UVa-Wise knocked off West Virginia Wesleyan 6-2 to claim the inaugural Mountain East Conference Softball Championship.  It was the first MEC title for the Cavaliers in any sport and the seventh league championship for the softball program since 2002.

A day after failing to score a run in a 12-inning affair against UVa-Wise (37-14), West Virginia Wesleyan (41-12) scored in the top of the first inning.  Alex Furr reached base to lead off the game with a walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt.  The second baseman would scamper home two hitters later on a Megan Malenstyn RBI sacrifice bunt. 

The Bobcats inability to put more runs on the board in the inning would cost the club dearly later on as Brandts struck out Olivia Gore before retiring Rebekah Honce on a ground ball to shortstop to end the threat.

UVa-Wise would take a lead it would not relinquish in the home half of the frame.  Sarah Wiltshire reached on a bunt base hit to lead off the inning before Christina Ziemba singled to right field.  Mindy Combs would then reach base on an error to load the bases for cleanup hitter Kristina Romualdo.  The senior first baseman would knot the game on a RBI ground out to shortstop.  The big blow in the frame would come one hitter later when senior third baseman Dillion blasted an opposite field three-run homer to give her club a 4-1 lead.

The score would remain 4-1 until the fourth inning when a pair of Wesleyan errors allowed Ziemba to score from second base on a miss-played ground ball. 

The regular-season champion Bobcats would make an effort to get back in the game in the fifth inning when Megan Malenstyn lined a two-out RBI double to score Carleigh Hall who had a one-out single earlier in the frame.  MEC Pitcher of the Year Brandts was again able to wiggle out of the jam as she got pinch hitter Brooklyn Waddell to ground out, retiring the side.

The Cavs would get the run back in the home sixth when the senior trio of Romualdo, Dillion, and Charity Lawson manufactured a run. Romualdo singled, moved to second on a bunt by Dillion, and scored on a RBI hit by Lawson.

With a 6-2 lead, Brandts would head to the circle three outs away from giving her school its first conference championship since 2009.  Wesleyan would not go down without a fight as Furr singled with one out and Jacqui Omichinski lined a two out single.  Malenstyn then came to the plate needing to reach base to bring the tying run the plate, the catcher would fly out to deep centerfield to end the game, securing the title for UVa-Wise.

Brandts scattered six hits in the complete game effort.  She struck out four and walked one while allowing just one earned run.  To finish the tournament, the freshman allowed just one earned run over her final 19 innings pitched.

Ziemba finished the championship game with three hits to go along with a pair of runs scored. Rachel Fischer finished the game 2-3 and Romualdo scored a pair of runs while also knocking in a run for the Cavs.

Furr and Malenstyn each had two hits for the Bobcats; as team, no Wesleyan hitter lower than fourth in the batting order registered a hit.

For their efforts, three Cavs were named to the All-Tournament Team. Brandts earned Tournament MVP honors as she was the winning pitcher in three of UVa-Wise's four wins.  Centerfielder Christina Ziemba hit .533, scored four runs, knocked in four runs and lined eight hits in the tournament while Fischer hit .500 with a homer and four RBIs.