Aztecs win Mountain West softball tournament, secure automatic bid to NCAA Tournament

Make it two in a row for the San Diego State softball program.

The top-seeded Aztecs beat host and fifth-seed Boise State 6-3 on Saturday for the Mountain West tournament championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The win puts SDSU ahead of Colorado State for the most conference tournament championships among active teams. The Aztecs also lead the conference with nine regular season titles.

SDSU will watch the NCAA Tournament Selection Show Sunday afternoon to find out which Regional it will head to for the NCAA Tournament.

The Aztecs led with four players selected to the All-Tournament team. Mac Barbara earned the MVP award. She broke the tournament record with three home runs, while batting .625 with six RBIs and four runs scored.

Katie Goldberg was also named to the team for hitting .571 with an RBI and a run scored in addition to stellar defensive play. The Aztecs’ final hitter selected to the team was Alyssa Garcia. She hit .429 with four RBIs and two runs scored but Garcia’s highlight was her go-ahead two-run home run in the title game.

SDSU ace Allie Light also earned a spot on the team, going 2-0 with a 0.91 ERA in 72/3 innings, allowing just one run on four hits while striking out six.

The Aztecs scored twice in the third inning to take a 2-0 lead. Bella Espinoza led off with a single. Barbara singled to right-center field to score Espinoza and advanced to second on the throw. After a strikeout, Goldberg doubled down the left field line, scoring a pinch runner.

After the Broncos evened the game in the fifth inning, SDSU struck back, scoring a pair of runs each in the fifth and sixth innings to take a 6-2 lead. Boise State scored once again in the seventh, but the Aztecs held on.

With one out in the bottom of the fifth, the Broncos walked Barbara to face Garcia. She responded with her homer to center field as SDSU went back on top, 4-2.