NEWARK, Del. — FIU's softball program closed out its 2026 campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Louisiana Tech in eight innings in the opening round of the Conference USA (CUSA) Softball Championships on Wednesday afternoon.
The Panthers (34-18) battled with the Bulldogs (30-23) in a low-scoring affair at the Delaware Softball Diamond. FIU scored in the first inning before Louisiana Tech answered in the third inning, tying the score at 1-all.
Both teams were held off the board until the top of eight when the Bulldogs plated the eventual winning run. The Panthers had runners on first and second in the bottom half of the eighth, but back-to-back outs sealed the win for Louisiana Tech.
J'dah Girigorie (L, 10-8) pitched excellently for FIU in the defeat, scattering nine hits in 7.2 innings while allowing just two earned runs and striking out five on 131 pitches. Brooke McNichols came on in relief to get the final out of the eight inning, a strikeout to cap her outstanding FIU career.
Offensively, Kally Meredith had two hits, including a leadoff triple, and scored a run in four at-bats. Janelle Martinez picked up the other hit for the Panthers and had FIU's lone RBI. FIU had two hits in the opening frame and managed just one hit in the final seven innings.
BAPTIST HEALTH
The 2026 FIU Softball season is presented by Baptist Health, The Official Sports Medicine Provider of FIU Athletics.
SOCIAL MEDIA
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