The Spring Hill Softball team suffered their first loss of the 2026 SIAC Softball Championship, falling to Fort Valley State, 4-1, in the opening game of the championship round.

The Badgers entered the day undefeated, having won the winner's bracket, meaning despite the loss, the two teams will return later this afternoon for a winner-take-all game two for the SIAC Championship.

Bethany Ahrens again had a solid outing for Spring Hill, giving up just two earned runs on six hits and two walks, but two unearned runs in the first inning set the tone and gave Fort Valley State the jolt needed to continue their Cinderella run. The Badgers were again disciplined at the plate, drawing 10 walks in the game, but they struggled to find gaps in the Wildcat defense as Spring Hill had just one hit in the game and scored the one run.

Spring Hill fell behind 2-0 in the top of the first inning as Fort Valley State took advantage of a fielding error to extend the inning and push across the first two runs of the game. The Badgers answered in the bottom half of the inning, but their damage was limited to just one run despite having runners at second and third with no one out. Janci Aube, who led off the inning with a walk, would eventually score on Bethany Ahrens' sacrifice fly to cut it to 2-1.

Ahrens settled in after the first inning and held Fort Valley State scoreless over the next three innings, but Spring Hill would strand a combined five runners, including leaving the bases loaded in the third, to maintain their one-run deficit. The Wildcats created a bit of distance with a home run in the fifth and another solo shot in the sixth, bringing an end to Ahrens' day. Emma Curry came in and kept the game at 4-1, giving Spring Hill's bats a chance to make a comeback.

The Badgers had the tying run at the plate in the bottom of the sixth inning, but Fort Valley State kept Spring Hill off the board and then went 1-2-3 in the seventh to force a deciding game two for the 2026 SIAC Championship.

Spring Hill and Fort Valley State will square-off for the championship-deciding game at 4 p.m. today. With a win, the Badgers will take home their third-straight SIAC Championship.