The Sacred Heart University softball team lost 1-0 to Canisius in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championship on May 7, ending its 2025 season. The game took place at Marist’s Gartland Athletic Field in Poughkeepsie, New York.
This match marked Sacred Heart’s first appearance in the MAAC Tournament during its inaugural season in the league. The Pioneers finished the year with a 21-27 overall record, achieving their second consecutive 20-win season.
Pitching dominated the early innings, with both teams scoreless after three frames. Sacred Heart held a slight edge in hits but was unable to capitalize as Canisius kept runners stranded. Sam Kowalski started for SHU and struck out four batters while allowing just one hit through three innings.
Canisius scored the game’s only run in the bottom of the fourth inning after loading the bases with no outs. Despite two pop-ups and a strikeout limiting further damage, that single run proved decisive. Sacred Heart had opportunities to tie in both the fifth and seventh innings but could not convert, as Canisius pitcher Olivia Manchester escaped both situations unscathed.
Kowalski finished her junior season with five strikeouts over six innings pitched, allowing one run. She set career highs this year with 180 strikeouts and an earned run average of 2.17. Four different SHU players recorded hits during the contest, including doubles from Kowalski and Kaelyn Freed.
The Pioneers’ performance capped off a notable season that included their first-ever MAAC Tournament appearance and another milestone of back-to-back seasons with more than twenty wins.
