WEBSTER GROVES - Webster University is to begin its quest for a St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship in softball on Thursday, May 3 as the Gorloks open up play in the SLIAC Tournament at 5 p.m. against regular season champion Westminster (Mo.) College at ABC Park in St. Ann, Mo.

The Gorloks, who needed to win its final six games of the regular season to earn a spot in the SLIAC Tournament, earned the No. 4 seed in this year's tournament after posting a 12-6 record in league play during the regular season. Webster secured its tournament berth after sweeping a doubleheader on Monday at Iowa Wesleyan as the Gorloks posted a 3-1 win in eight innings in the opener and then earned a 12-0 win in six innings in the nightcap. 

For the second consecutive season, the SLIAC Tournament will feature the exact same teams as four of the teams that qualified this season also played in last year's tournament that was won by Greenville University. The Panthers defeated Webster in last year's title game, 7-1 to claim the SLIAC title and the league's automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Softball Tournament. 

The only difference between this season's tournament field and last season's are the seeds as Webster was the No. 3 seed in 2017, while Fontbonne was the No. 4 seed, but this season, Fontbonne is the No. 3 seed and Webster is the No. 4 seed. 

Westminster enters the double-elimination tournament as the favorite as the Blue Jays went 16-2 in league play with their only two losses coming at Greenville on April 26. The Blue Jays, who are the two-time defending regular season champs, open the tournament on Thursday against Webster, who they swept during the regular season at Blackburn Park. Westminster has claimed three regular season titles and three SLIAC Tournament titles, but hasn't won the tournament since winning three successive years from 1991-93. 

At last year's tournament, the Blue Jays went 1-2 as they opened the tournament with a 7-0 win over Fontbonne, before falling on the second day to both Greenville (3-2) and Webster (7-3). 

The Gorloks, who are sporting a 17-15 overall record, enter the postseason having won six straight game since losing dropping back-to-back doubleheaders at Augustana (Ill.) and Eureka. Webster comes into the tournament hitting .298 as a team and is sporting a team ERA of 3.00, which is second-best in the SLIAC behind Eureka's 2.62 ERA.  

Leading the way offensively for the Gorloks is senior second baseman Tessa Johanning (Sullivan, Mo./Sullivan), who is hitting .378 on the year and leads the team in hits (42) and RBI (28), is second in doubles (7) and third in runs scored (22). Along with Johanning, senior first baseman Katlyn Garza (O'Fallon, Mo./Fort Zumwalt North) is hitting .366 as she has recorded 34 hits, four doubles, three home runs, drawn 20 walks and has 23 RBI and senior catcher Terri Dearth (Lemont, Ill./Southwestern Illinois) leads the team in home runs (8) and doubles (9), is second in RBI (26) and has scored 30 runs and recorded 32 hits. Dearth is third in the league in homers and ninth in runs scored. 

In addition to those Johanning, Garza and Dearth, sophomore shortstop Taylor White (St. Charles, Mo./St. Charles Lutheran) is second in the league in stolen bases with 22 as she is 22-for--24 on the season and has scored a team-best 31 runs, walked 20 times, has had 33 hits, two triples and is hitting .311, while sophomore centerfielder Abby Burroughs (Edwardsville, Ill./Triad) is hitting .296 with 29 hits, 20 runs scored, five doubles, two home runs, 20 RBI and has walked 17 times. 

Meanwhile in the circle, senior Morgan Mansur (Decatur, Ill./Lincoln Land CC) leads the way with a 10-6 record and a 2.42 ERA, which is third-best in the SLIAC. On the season, Mansur has made 16 starts, thrown 11 complete games, tossed two shutouts, including throwing a combined no-hitter with sophomore Kaitlyn Johnson (East Alton, Ill./Greenville University) against MacMurray. In 104.1 innings of work, Mansur has struck out 62 and walked 26. Her 62 strikeouts are fifth in the league, while her 10 wins are fourth in the league. Along with Mansur, senior Chelsea Thornley (Clinton, Mo./Clinton) is 4-5 with a 3.53 ERA and in 45.2 innings, she has thrown four complete games, one shutout, has earned two saves, which is one shy of the single season mark for saves, while Johnson is 3-4 with a 3.62 ERA and has made 10 starts, tossed two complete games and one shutout and has thrown 60 innings on the year. 

Webster, who is coached by Chris Eaton, has posted a 25-15 all-time record in the SLIAC Tournament, including winning the championship four times (1998, 1999, 2007 and 2009). In addition, Webster has been tournament runners-up five times (2008, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2017). 

Eaton is in his 10th season at the helm of the Gorloks softball team and has posted a 198-176 record and was named the SLIAC Coach of the Year in 2010. His 198 wins are second most all-time in program history as only Craig Walston won more games as he posted a 263-90 record as the Gorloks coach from 1997-2005. 

In addition to Webster and Westminster, the other first round SLIAC Tournament game on Thursday will match No. 2 seed Greenville (18-15 overall, 15-3 SLIAC) meeting No. 3 seed Fontbonne (13-21 overall, 13-5 SLIAC) at 7 p.m. Thursday's two winners will play each other on Friday, May 4 at 1 p.m., while the two losers from Thursday's games will meet on Friday, May 4 at 3 p.m. Greenville comes into the tournament having won 10 straight games, including sweeping Westminster in a doubleheader.

Greenville has won the last two SLIAC Softball Tournament titles, while Fontbonne has won a league-best nine SLIAC Softball Tournament titles. In addition to Fontbonne, Webster has won the tournament four times, while Westminster has won three times and former league member Maryville won tournament titles in 1994 and 2008 before moving up to the NCAA Division II level. In fact, Fontbonne, Greenville, Maryville, Webster and Westminster are the only schools to win SLIAC Tournament titles in softball.