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Brooklyn, NY — The journey was slightly different, but the end result remained the same.
 
Playing for the Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament title away from Loretto for the first time since 2019, Saint Francis U (26-24), the number two seed in the tournament for the first time in four seasons, hoisted the conference’s championship trophy in Brooklyn on Sunday morning.
 
Advancing into the winner’s bracket with a dominant five-inning, 10-2 win over No. 3 FDU on Thursday, the Red Flash knocked off No. 4 Central Connecticut on Saturday in walk-off fashion before they claimed the title for the seventh time in eight years with a commanding 6-0 win over top-seeded LIU.
 
It marked the fifth time since 2018 that the two league foes duked it out for the title, with Saint Francis U coming away with the trophy all five times in that stretch. 
 
Despite the early-morning start, the Red Flash were firing on all cylinders, taking a 5-0 lead in the top of the opening frame and never looking back. NEC Golden Glove Award recipient and All-NEC first teamer Olivia Ulam showed her prowess at the plate with a three-run home run. 
 
Third baseman Aliya Garroway kept the rally going with zero outs in the frame with an RBI double before she crossed home with two down on a wild pitch to push the score to 5-0. 
 
Allie Braly, who tossed 16-of-19 frames for the Red Flash and posted a microscopic 0.42 ERA in the tournament, packed a punch in Sunday’s championship game. Fanning two batters, she allowed just six Sharks to reach base on her watch, conceding four hits and a pair of walks.
 
Junior outfielder Savannah Nash, who provided the heroics in Saturday’s win over the Blue Devils with a walk-off two-run shot, doubled her home run count and wrapped up the scoring with a solo blast in the in the top of the sixth.
 
Going 4-for-9 at the plate with four runs and five RBI, Nash was selected as the NEC Tournament’s Most Valuable Player just four days after being named NEC Player of the Year. She was joined on the awards podium by Braly, Ulam and second baseman Addie Smith on the NEC All-Tournament Team.
 
NEC regular season champion LIU concluded its season with a 26-23 mark.
 
The Red Flash will learn their NCAA Tournament opponents and region tonight during the NCAA Selection Show, which will air at 7 pm on ESPN2.

NEC SOFTBALL ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Savannah Nash, SFU (MVP)
Allie Braly, SFU
Addie Smith, SFU
Olivia Ulam, SFU
Hannah Burnett, LIU
Alyssa Garcia, LIU
Devon Medina, LIU
Allie Braly, SFU
Grace Lawton, CCSU
Abby Meehan, CCSU
Celeste Quezada, FDU