SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - The College of Southern Idaho pitching staff took care of business all weekend and the Golden Eagle bats followed as CSI beat Salt Lake CC in the Region 18 Championship game 7-1.
In Wednesday's game, Brooke Merrill pitched all seven innings, giving up just one run on six hits for the win. At the plate, Gracie Tentinger was 3-for-4 with a home run, Kenzee Hale was 3-for-4 with two home runs and two RBI, Makenzie Evans was 1-for-1 with a home run and Tessa Hokanson was 2-for-3.
CSI took its first lead of the game in the fourth inning on a Hale solo shot. But the Golden Eagles added three more in the fifth when Tentinger homered to start the scoring. Rachael Brown before Maame Johnson stole second running for Brown. Saige Nielsen knocked a double to the wall to score Johnson and then Markessa Jensen hit an RBI single to give the Golden Eagles a 4-0 lead and roll from there. 
The win sends CSI to the NJCAA Division I National Championships next week in Oxford, Alabama.
Gracie Walters was named the Region Tournament MVP. She won two games on the weekend, giving up just four total hits two runs and held her opponents to a .098 batting average with five strikeouts.
Merrill, Tentinger, Hokanson, Nielsen and Hale also made the all-tournament team for the Golden Eagles. Merrill finished the tournament with one win, giving up just one earned run in her 8.2 innings.
Tentinger finished the tournament with a .625 batting average and .700 on base percentage and two home runs. Hokanson hit .600 with two home runs, Hale hit two big home runs in the championship game and Nielsen broke game one open with a grand slam and then had a huge RBI double in the championship.