Lady Lions headed to conference tournament
May 5—WEATHERFORD — After reaching the championship game last year, North Central Texas College is looking to make another run in the Region V North softball tournament.
NCTC is among eight teams competing in the tournament Thursday through Sunday at Weatherford College. The winner earns a bid to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I tournament in Yuma, Arizona.
The Lady Lions finished fourth in the North Texas Junior College Athletic Conference (NTJCAC) with a 17-15 record. NCTC opens its tournament run Thursday night against host Weatherford, who finished fifth.
The tournament uses a double-elimination format. The winner between NCTC and Weatherford faces the winner between Ranger College and NTJCAC champion McLennan Community College on Friday. The losers of the two games will also play.
The Lady Lions finished the regular season by winning three of four against Vernon College. The week prior, NCTC split its four games with Weatherford. The home team won each game.
As for NCTC's potential Friday opponents, the Lady Lions swept Ranger College in the regular season but were swept by McLennan.
NCTC freshman Sasha Jennings leads the Lady Lions with a 0.454 batting average, while freshman Alexis Tanguma is the RBI leader with 55. Freshman pitcher Taylor Spence leads the pitching staff with a 2.93 ERA. Spence has struck out 153 hitters this season, more than the rest of the team combined.
Last season, NCTC dropped its opening game but won three-straight to reach the title game. The Lady Lions ultimately fell to host Grayson College, 5-3. Grayson went on to finish as national runners-up.
