BRONX, N.Y. – Down one with the bases loaded and one away, veteran Gabbie Kowalik stepped in to turn the tide for the Billikens, lacing a double down the right-field line and off the glove of a diving UD defender, opening the door for a pair to score and clinch a 4-3 victory for top-seeded Saint Louis over No. 3 overall Dayton. Kowalik and SLU faced elimination for virtually the entire matchup, trailing from the second inning on, but a resilient defensive effort – 13 Flyers left on base – combined with timely late hitting offered Saint Louis a shot back at reaching Saturday.

Win in hand, SLU marches into the consolation bracket semifinal opportunity against No. 2 Loyola Chicago, battling the Ramblers in Friday evening's nightcap at 5:40 pm.

The Flyers jumped out ahead early on in the second, as Alyssa Cacini notched an infield RBI on a chopper to deep second. UD added to their lead in the third with another run, this time due to an throwing error within the SLU infield during the third, to surge ahead by two.

Saint Louis responded later in the fifth frame off the bat of Chloe Rhine, as the freshman connected for a deep two-run homer to right-center field to knot the contest back at 2-2. Just a half inning later, Ali Weekley stroked an RBI single into right field, reclaiming the edge for Dayton with just a frame-and-a-half to play.

With time running out late in the seventh, Cami Newbanks reached on a one-out single to left center befone Rhine got on base via a hit-by-pitch. Natalie Sullivan loaded the bases with a walk on the ensuing at-bat, setting up the eventual walk-off by Kowalik.

In the circle, the Billikens split the work between starter Kaili Hanner and stud Chloe Wendling (21-13), as the former handled the opening 4.0 frames before the latter stepped in to take over the final 3.0 innings. The two tallied zero strikeouts as a unit while giving up 13 total hits and two walks.

For Dayton, A-10 Rookie of the Year Izzy Kemp worked the entire game for the Flyers, tossing 6.1 frames with seven hits and five walks given up for four total earned runs with one strikeout.