Louisiana Tech split a pair of games on the opening day of the 2026 Conference USA Softball Championship on Wednesday at the Delaware Softball Diamond, defeating FIU in extra innings before falling to Liberty later in the evening.
The No. 7 seed Bulldogs opened the tournament with a 2-1 elimination-game victory over No. 6 FIU before suffering a 9-0 run-rule loss to No. 3 Liberty. LA Tech moved to 30-24 overall and remained alive in the tournament, advancing to face No. 5 New Mexico State in another elimination game Thursday evening.
Against FIU, Allie Furr delivered the game-winning hit in the top of the eighth inning on her 21st birthday. With two outs and runners on second and third, Furr lined a single up the middle to score Jina Baffuto, who slid home safely with the go-ahead run just in front of the tag.
The Bulldogs managed just two runs despite struggling in scoring opportunities, recording only one hit in their previous 14 at-bats with runners in scoring position before Furr’s clutch hit. Tech stranded 12 runners on base.
Bryannah Campos earned the win in relief for LA Tech, improving to 8-3 after tossing six scoreless innings. Campos allowed only one hit while striking out four and repeatedly escaped trouble, including working out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the sixth inning. FIU finished 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
FIU’s J’dah Girigorie took the loss after allowing two runs on nine hits over 7 2/3 innings while striking out five.
With the win, Tech recorded its 30th victory for the fifth straight season and extended its season-best winning streak to eight games.
Later Wednesday night, Liberty used a pair of explosive innings to hand the Bulldogs a season-high margin defeat in a 9-0 run-rule decision.
Savannah Jesse paced the Lady Flames offense with five RBIs, going 2-for-2 with a two-run home run in the third inning and a two-run double in the fourth. Alexia Carrasquillo added a solo homer while Savanah Whatley and Brynn McManus each contributed RBI hits during Liberty’s eight-run surge across the third and fourth innings.
Camden Anders earned the shutout victory for Liberty, allowing only three singles while striking out six and walking two.
Ruby Fidge suffered the loss for LA Tech after surrendering four runs on five hits in 2 2/3 innings. Gracie Flores extended her CUSA leading hit streak to 20 games, the longest streak by a Bulldog in more than five years.
Liberty advanced to face No. 2 seed WKU on Thursday afternoon, while the Bulldogs prepared for another elimination game against New Mexico State at 4 p.m. CT. The game can be seen on ESPN+.
