ORLANDO, Fla. (JMU Athletics) – James Madison softball led 2-0 after four innings, but surrendered three runs in the final two frames to fall 3-2 to UCF on Sunday afternoon at the Black and Gold Classic.

UCF (4-1) tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth and eventually took the lead in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI double from Izzy Mertes, with Katelyn Cochran tossing two perfect innings to pick up the win for the Knights.

Freshman Madalyn Johnson made her third appearance and second start of the weekend in the circle, striking out two in 5.0 innings of work before picking up the loss. Abbie Campbell led JMU (0-5) at the plate with a 2-for-3 showing, including an RBI double.

Lily Romero also contributed an RBI single, with Madison Edwards adding on her first hit of the year on a double to right. Reed Butler also finished 1-for-2 with a walk.

How It Happened
First Inning
• After Raegan Wall earned a leadoff walk and stole second, Campbell doubled to center field with one out, scoring Wall for the early 1-0 lead.
Second Inning
• Edwards got herself in scoring position with a double for Romero who laced an RBI single to left field for the 2-0 advantage.
Fifth Inning
• UCF’s Coco Jaimes singled through the right side to score Izzy Mertes from third for the Knights’ first run of the game.
• Samantha Rey doubled to right center to score Jaimes and tie the contest, 2-2.
Sixth Inning
• With a runner on third and two out, Mertes gave the Knights the lead on her second double of the day to left center field.
Game Notes
• This is the second time in its history that JMU has gone 0-5 in a tournament. The first came in 2012 when the Dukes were winless at the Stanford/Louisville Slugger Classic from Mar 9-11 in Palo Alto, Calif.
• Campbell’s two-hit day tied a single-game career-high. She last had two hits against Georgia Southern on April 27, 2024.

— JMU Athletics —