KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) won its first-ever NCCAA Softball National Championship after defeating No. 3 Columbia International University (CIU) 7-4.

The Lions trailed 3-0 after the second inning, but climbed back into the game in the fourth, as Rosie Guadarrama and Illeana Salinas each had RBI-singles to make it 3-2. Airiana Magdaleno tied it up in the third with an RBI-single that scored Alana Ortega. In the sixith inning, SAGU would tack on 2 more runs before Maddie Watson crushed a 2-run home run to make it 7-4. In the circle, Ashlyn Teran picked up the win in relief, going 5.1 innings and allowing just 3 hits and 1 walk while striking out 6 batters.

SAGU opened pool play with a 9-8 loss against No. 7 Arlington Baptist University (ABU), losing in walk-off fashion in the bottom of the seventh inning. The No. 2 seeded Lions bounced back with a 6-4 win over No. 6 Hannibal-LaGrange University, led by Kassandra Vargas who cranked a home run and drove in two runs. SAGU then defeated CIU 6-5, as Salinas went 2-for-4 with 3 RBI’s and 1 run scored. The Lions finished 2-1 in pool play and advanced to the semifinals after a 6-5 win over ABU in a pool play tiebreaker game.

In the semifinal matchup against No. 1 Mid-America Christian University, the Lions came out strong as Teran hit a grand slam in the first inning. SAGU would go on to win 5-2 as Teran picked up the win on the mound, allowing 6 hits and striking out 7 batters.

The Lions’ Rosie Guadarrama was named the Tournament Most Outstanding Player.

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GREENVILLE, S.C. – The NCCAA is pleased to recognize Faith Hollingsworth of Mid-America Christian University (MACU) as the 2021 Game Plan 4 LIFE Character Award recipient for Softball.

A captain for the Evangels, Faith Hollingsworth is a steady leader. In just more than 50 games played at MACU, the Burkburnett, Texas native boasts a .345 batting average, has driven in over 30 RBI’s, and nears the top of the team with a .552 slugging percentage. She has knocked home six home runs in just two seasons and has an impressive .417 on base percentage. In 2020 and 2021 she was named to the All-Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC) Second Team.

Off the field Hollingsworth is a member of the English club, serves as an English tutor on campus, and is a writer for the MACU Anglius Chronicles. At Central Baptist Church, she serves as a Bible study leader for grade school children. The senior will graduate with a degree in secondary English education, is a member of Phi Theta Kappa Honor society, and is a two-time SAC and NCCAA Scholar-Athlete.   

“Faith is a leader in every way,” stated Head Coach Robert Wakefield. “She leads us in our devotional every day. Faith is a young lady that you want on your team and it has been my pleasure to coach her the last two years.”

The purpose of the Game Plan 4 LIFE Character Award is to recognize NCCAA student-athletes who epitomize the Christian character qualities of:

LOVE: demonstrating a caring and consistent love for others (I Corinthians 13)
INTEGRITY: living out ethical principles in a clear consistent manner (Job 27:5)
FAITH: acknowledging a life of faith and sharing that faith with others (Hebrews 11)
EXCELLENCE: striving to do all things at the highest standard (Philippians 4:8)

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