LEXINGTON, Ky. – For the second time in a three-day stretch, the Franklin softball team matched up with the Mount St. Joseph Lions this time with a spot in the championship series of the 2023 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Softball Tournament up for grabs.
 
The Grizzlies (31-14) and Lions (31-12) played another tight, low-scoring contest but the Grizzlies saw their season come to an end with a 3-1 loss.
 
The Lions jumped in front with a run in the first and added a run in the fourth while the Grizzlies managed just a trio of base-runners over their first four trips to the plate.
 
Down three and down to their final out, Franklin got on the board thanks to an RBI single from Kaylee Stewart that cut it to a two-run game and brought the tying run to the plate. But the rally ended one batter later as Shelby Crockett was retired to bring the game to a close.
 
Stewart, Molly Wallace and Sydney Bostic accounted for the Grizzlies' hits on the afternoon. Stephanni Kleber (17-6) got the start and held the Lions to three runs on six hits with a walk and a strikeout.
 
Franklin's season ends with a program-record 31 wins, breaking the previous single season record held by the 2018 team of 30