Orangeburg, SC —   The Shaw University softball team saw its season come to a close Thursday after suffering back-to-back losses in the 2025 CIAA Softball Championship Tournament at Orangeburg Recreation Park.

In the opening round, the Lady Bears fell to Bowie State 11-3 in a five-inning matchup. Shaw opened the game strong with a run in the first inning and stayed within reach through the early frames, but a five-run outburst by the Bulldogs in the fifth ended the contest by run rule. D'Amani Gadson led the Lady Bears offensively with a triple and one RBI, while Jordan Booker collected two hits and stole a base. Gadson also started in the circle, pitching 4.2 innings and allowing 10 earned runs on 11 hits.

Shaw returned to the field for an elimination game against Winston-Salem State, where they again started strong but ultimately fell 10-4. The Lady Bears scored three runs in the second inning and another in the fourth, but the Rams' offense surged with 12 hits and key scoring bursts in the fourth and sixth innings. Booker highlighted the offense with a triple and an RBI, while Iona Davis added two RBIs. Catalina Mendoza took the loss, surrendering six earned runs over four innings of work, with Gadson pitching the final two frames.

With the two tournament losses, Shaw concludes the 2025 season with a 7-21 overall record while showing a tremendous improvement from last season.