CARTHAGE, Mo. — The (14-12) Carthage Lady Tigers hosted the (24-5) Neosho Lady Cats in a COC rival showdown Tuesday evening.

The Lady Cats pulled away from the Lady Tigers with a 3-1 victory and outright claimed the COC title. First COC title in school’s history.

Neosho’s ace Carleigh Kinnaird had a monstrous game with 19 strikeouts on the day. The Lady Cats went up 1-0 early in the second inning and maintaines the lead. In extra innings, Neosho’s offense scored two runs to take a 3-1 lead with a Beclynn Garrett RBI that Autum Kinnaird scored on and an RBI from Carleigh Kinnaird that sent home Garrett. The Lady Cats finished the regular season with a 24-6 record and will get ready for postseason play next Thursday in the Class 5 District 7 tournament hosted by Joplin.

Despite the loss, the Lady Tigers pitcher Addie Wallace had double-digit strikeouts with 10. Carthage’s offense finally came alive in the bottom of the sixth with a shallow hit from Lottie Youngblood to centerfield would send Ashlyn Brust home for the tying run. The Lady Tigers fall to 14-13 on the season and for their next contest, they will be on the road at the FCNB Rolla Softball Invitational this Friday and Saturday to finish out the regular season.