Oskaloosa softball has put together another 20+ win season and for the third time in the last five years the Bears are headed to the Class 3A State tournament after winning their home Regional. The Bears after a first round bye earned a 16-2 win over ACCHS in the Semifinals and then beat Perry Lecompton in a high scoring contest 12-11 in the Championship. 

The Bears after a first round bye wasted no time taking control of their Semifinal game against ACCHS as the Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first but Oskaloosa answered with a 10-run bottom of the first. ACCHS scored another run in the third but Oskaloosa added five more of their own in the bottom of the frame and scored another in the fourth going on to secure the 16-2 win in five innings. Megan Miller helped lead an 11-hit attack for Oskaloosa as she had two-hits and three RBI's, while Paige Lowe had two-hits for the Bears and Briana VanHoutan chipped in three RBI's. Ellie Stember was solid in the circle tossing all five innings giving up just two runs on four hits and struckout six to earn the win. 

In the Championship it was a different story than the Semifinals for Oskaloosa as it didn't come easy and the Bears had to fight off Perry Lecompton to earn the 12-11 win and the bid to the State tournament. The Kaws jumped up early scoring five runs in the top of the first inning and adding another in the second to lead 6-0 before Oskaloosa got on the board and had a five-run bottom of the third to make it a one-run contest. Perry Lecompton plated another run in the fourth but Oskaloosa tied it at 7-7 with two runs in the bottom of the fourth. Bears swung their first lead with a run in the fifth, then both teams tallied two in the sixth each and Perry Lecompton tied the game at 10-10 with a run in the seventh ultimately forcing the game to extra innings. In the top of the eight Perry Lecompton scored a run to take the lead but Oskaloosa answered in the bottom of the eighth with two-runs to earn the walkoff 12-11 win. The Bears overcame six errors in the contest and both teams had 18 hits in the matchup. Brylie Bassett tossed all eight innings for the Bears to earn the win. 

After taking the Regional title Oskaloosa now sits at 20-3 on the season and heads into the Clss 3A State tournament just a year removed from a State runner-up finish in 2016. Class 3A State Tournament will commence Thursday, May 24th in Manhattan at Twin Oaks Complex.