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East Peoria, Ill. - If at first you don't succeed, try, try again.

After dropping the first game of the Great Lakes Valley Conference championship round to Quincy and All-American pitcher Torie Bunzell, the No. 25 Lewis Flyers responded with a 1-0 victory over the Hawks to claim their second-straight GLVC title and their 10th overall at the Eastside Centre on Sunday (May 8) afternoon.

"This championship means so much," Lewis head softball coach George DiMatteo said. "Coming into this weekend, we thought we had to win this tournament because we weren't ranked regionally

"We know how difficult it is to win this tournament because all eight teams had a chance to win it," DiMatteo continued. "I'm elated and relieved that we won the bid, because we did not leave a doubt."

Lewis senior Diana Pickrum (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) matched Bunzell (29-11) pitch for pitch, as she earned her 10th complete-game shutout of the season. Pickrum (16-4) held Quincy to just three hits on the afternoon. 

"(Diana) was outstanding," DiMatteo said. "She was determined not to let us lose and willed us to win." 

The lone run of the game came in the first inning, as Flyer sophomore center fielder Jayme Hefler (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) (Glen Ellyn, Ill./Glenbard West) reached base on a bunt single.

Hefler advanced to second on a Bunzell wild pitch and third on a sacrifice bunt by junior third baseman Traci Freitag (Westmont, Ill./Hinsdale Central) (Westmont, Ill./Hinsdale Central).

Senior first baseman Stephanie Harmon (Joliet, Ill./Plainfield South) (Joliet, Ill./Plainfield South) plated Hefler with a squeeze bunt to give the Flyers the lone run of the game. .

In the opening game, Quincy used the strength of three home runs of Flyer starter Karissa Habel (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove South) (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove South) to claim the 7-4 win over the Flyers.

Quincy first baseman Lauren Francis provided the decisive blow for the Hawks with a three-run homer in the fifth inning, followed by a solo shot by Erin Gregory. Hawks' left fielder Whitney Kroeger added a solo homer in the third inning.

Habel (12-4) allowed seven runs, five earned, and ten hits while striking out three batters in 6.1 innings of work. Bunzell surrendered five hits, four runs, three earned, and struck out six batters to earn the win, which was her sixth of the weekend.

Offensively, the Flyers were led by senior second baseman Kayla Smith (Glendale Heights, Ill./Glenbard North) (Glendale Heights, Ill./Glenbard North) and junior catcher Mary Giancarlo (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield South) (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield South). Smith was 2-for-3 with two RBI and a run scored, while Giancarlo went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI.