SALEM, Va. - Birmingham-Southern advanced to the NCAA Division III Softball Championship semifinals after a split of games Saturday. The Panthers bounced back from an early morning 12-1 loss to Virginia Wesleyan in the winner's bracket to beat Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 2-1, in a noon elimination game. 

Morgan McGuire (Notasulga, Ala./Reeltown HS) led BSC with two runs scored on the day and hit 2-for-3 in the win over Wisconsin-Oshkosh. She led off both games by reaching base on a catcher's interference call and scored the Panthers' first runs in the first inning both times. 

Against Virginia Wesleyan, Saydee Keith (Corner, Ala./Corner HS) doubled to drive in McGuire to give BSC a 1-0 lead in the first, but the Marlins used a two-run home run to take the lead in the bottom of the first. McGuire gave chase on the home run ball, narrowly missing the catch as she crashed through the temporary fencing. Virginia Wesleyan added five runs in each the third and fourth innings to enforce a 12-1 run-rule victory. 

In the elimination game, Keith singled in McGuire for the 1-0 lead in the first. Izzy Berkopec (Pittsburgh, Pa./ Mars Area HS) drove in an insurance run in the fourth inning, scoring Kailey Walters (Trussville, Ala./Hewitt-Trussville, Ala.), who singled to lead off the inning. 

Wisconsin-Oshkosh scored an unearned run in the bottom of the fourth, but Hailee Bryan (Laurel Hill, Fla./Paxton HS) finished the game with only four hits, one walk and four strikeouts to improve to 16-4 in the circle. Bryan was charged with the loss in the first game.

Keith and Kaylyn Chapman (New Castle, Pa./Shenango HS) were the only players to have a hit in both games, one in each game. Alyssa Fowler (Moody, Ala./Moody HS) also had a hit Saturday against Virginia Wesleyan.

Birmingham-Southern will meet No. 4 seed Texas Lutheran in the national semifinal Sunday at 11 a.m. CT. The Panthers need to beat Texas Lutheran twice on Sunday to advance to the best-of-three championship series May 31 - June 1.