CLINTON, Miss. - The Belhaven Blazers advanced to the NCCAA Mideast Region Championship with shutout victories of Alice Lloyd and Mississippi College on Tuesday afternoon at the MC Softball Complex.
 
Belhaven earned an 8-0 victory against Alice Lloyd and a 4-0 victory against Mississippi College.
 
The Blazers entered the region tournament as the number two seed, and the Green and Gold faced Alice Lloyd in the opening game of the tournament.
 
The Blazers started the scoring right out of the gate, when Dani Craft sent a fly ball over the left field wall for her sixth bomb of the year.  Following a hit by pitch and a single up the middle, Carly Yasses smoked a doubled in the left center field gap, bringing home Makenzie Hawkins and Hannah Holloway.
 
Hawkins delivered again in the second inning with a double, bringing home Craft. Yasses followed with a single to bring home Hawkins.
 
Leading 5-0 in the 4th inning, Hawkins brought home her second RBI of the contest, bringing home Holloway's third run of the contest on a double.
 
Belhaven added two more runs in the fifth to end the contest via the run rule. Holloway doubled in Crystal Kehtel for the seventh run. Hawkins delivered her third RBI of the game and the eighth run when Holloway scored on a double.
 
Jordan Herring (9-1) allowed three hits and one walk while striking out nine batters in the win.
 
In the second game, the Blazers (33-6) took on host Mississippi College. Hawkins continued her dominant swing in the tournament with her fourth double of the day, bringing home Craft in the opening frame.
 
In the third, Craft went yard for the second time on the day with a solo shot to left, her seventh homer of the season.
 
In the next frame, Savannah Lyon joined the home run parade with a solo bomb of her own in the fourth.
 
Leading 3-0 in the seventh, the Blazers added an insurance run. After a Taylor O'Dell walk and a fielding error by Mary Austin Barber, Savannah Johnston pushed the runners up a base with a sacrifice bunt.  Craft followed with a squeeze bunt down the first base line and reached base. Adrianna Wallace, who pitch ran for O'Dell, scored the fourth run.
 
Taylor Surrento (9-3) fought out of back-to-back jams in the first and second innings. The Choctaws had runners at second and third in back-to-back innings, but Surrento was able to end the inning both times via the strikeout. She went the distance, allowing six hits and three walks with three strikeouts in the shutout victory.
 
With Mississippi College defeating Alice Lloyd in the elimination game Tuesday night, the Blazers will rematch with the Choctaws on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. at the MC Softball Complex. With a win on Wednesday, the Blazers would earn an automatic bid to the NCCAA World Series.