Heading into the final series of the regular season, the Lady Bears were hoping to finish the 2023 campaign on a high note with wins over visiting Hinds. And they did just that picking up a 5-1 win in Game 1 before getting a 10-2 win in Game 2.
 
"I thought that the season ended well," Southwest head coach Shea Johnson said. "We had some ups and downs but we ended on a great note and that is how you want to finish."
 
Mia Pumila got the start in Game 1 for the Lady Bears (19-27, 9-19 MACCC) and went the distance giving up only five hits, one run (earned) and one walk while striking out seven. She made an immediate impact striking out the first two batters she faced before getting the third Lady Eagle to fly out.
 
Her offense quickly followed suit. With Lilli Robertson on third, Anne Claire Sistrunk flew out deep enough to allow Robertson to score putting Southwest up 1-0. Next up was Kacey Stampley who kept the run going, launching a 1-2 pitch over the left field wall making it a 2-0 game.
 
Hinds scored its lone run of the contest in the second on an RBI single, cutting the Southwest lead in half at 2-1.
 
That score stood until the fourth when Robertson singled to third, scoring Madi Smith. The Lady Bears added two more the following inning as Stampley and Kayci Beth Wallace touched home, increasing the Southwest lead to 5-1.
 
Pumila showed her stamina battling hard in the sixth and seventh innings before closing out the game and picking up the win.
 
Offensively, the Lady Bears were led by Stampley who had two hits, two runs scored and one RBI.
 
Smith started Game 2 for the Lady Bears but ran into a bit of trouble early on as the Lady Eagles rallied and plated two runs. She was replaced by fellow sophomore Emme Wallace who struck out the next two batters.
 
The Southwest offense also put together its own rally in the bottom half of the first. After Robertson got on via a single, she scored when Sistrunk doubled two at bats later. Later in the inning Smith got into the act with an RBI single before both Gras and Addie Bagwell followed suit with the latter's plating two runs, putting the Lady Bears up 5-2. Two at bats later, Kayci Beth Wallace singled in Bagwell increasing the Southwest lead to 6-2.
 
Emme Wallace continued to look sharp for the Lady Bears, not allowing another run for the rest of the game. Her offense provided additional help in the fourth with four more runs which came on a Sarah Stockstill double, Smith reaching via an error, a Gras single and Cheyenne Tyson getting on via a fielder's choice. When the dust settled, the Lady Bears enjoyed a 10-2 advantage.
 
From there, Emme Wallace shut down the Lady Eagles in the top half of the fifth, preserving the win and marking the fourth home conference sweep of the season.
 
Emme Wallace and Smith combined to strike out four while giving up only six hits, two runs (both earned) and no walks.
 
Robertson had two hits and two runs scored while Gras also had two hits to go along with two RBIs. Smith and Bagwell also finished with two RBIs apiece.
 
Stampley wrapped her stellar Lady Bear career with multiple marks in the record books as the new leader in career doubles with 23, home runs with 17, walks with 30 and RBIs with 71. In addition, she also tied the home runs in a season mark with 12. Lilli Robertson joins her as the new career runs scored record holder at 74.