TAMPA, Fla. (April 12, 2026) –
Anne Long carried the University of South Florida softball team for 14 innings on Sunday against Florida Atlantic. USF and FAU played in the second-longest game in the NCAA this season and the longest in USF history and Head Coach
Ken Eriksen's career. The Bulls (32-13, 14-4 American) secured the series sweep with a 1-0 victory over the Owls (26-16, 8-10 American).
The 14 innings mark the longest game in USF history, surpassing the 13 innings against UCF on April 12, 2019. Long's 14 innings are the second-most in the NCAA this season. Long set a USF single-game record with 14 innings pitched. She finished with a career-high 13 strikeouts. She has pitched a complete game in her last five conference starts.
Offensively,
Karhys Pierce led the Bulls with a career-high four hits and a walk, extending her streak of reaching base safely to 14 games.
Jamia Nelson and
Kathy Garcia-Soto each had two hits, and Garcia-Soto scored the game-winning run.
Olivia Elliott recorded a hit and extended her streak of reaching base safely to 11 games. Elliott's seven at-bats tied a single-game record.
Long (USF) and Autumn Courtney (FAU) faced off in the circle for the second time of the weekend. Both pitchers threw complete games in Friday's series opener. The two picked up where they left off, making Sunday's matchup another pitchers' duel.
Long and Courtney went into the seventh inning, allowing just four hits each. Long had five strikeouts, while Courtney had four. Long added a strikeout in the seventh and allowed only one runner. The Bulls loaded the bases with two outs but were unable to score the winning run. The game was tied 0-0 as it headed into the eighth inning.
Long retired the side in order in the top of the eighth inning. USF loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning but failed to score. The game remained scoreless heading into the ninth inning. The Owls loaded the bases in the top of the 10th inning, but Long was up for the challenge and struck out the batter to end the threat. She set a new career high with 10 strikeouts. The game was still scoreless after 10 innings.
Long retired the side in order in the top of the 11th. The Bulls got a runner to second with one out, but the game remained scoreless and headed into the 12th. FAU threatened with runners on second and third in the top of the 13th, but once again, Long got out of the inning unscathed.
Lily Holtje led off the top of the 14th inning for FAU with a double. Long showed composure and struck out the next two batters. She got the next batter to pop up to shortstop.
Garcia-Soto led off the bottom of the 14th with a single up the middle. With one out, she stole second to move into scoring position.
Alexa Galligani flew out to center field. Garcia-Soto tagged up and advanced to third. The throw from the center fielder hit Garcia-Soto and bounced away from the third baseman, allowing Garcia-Soto to score the game-winning run.
Notables
• The 14 innings is the longest game in USF history, beating the 13 innings against UCF on April 12, 2019.
• The 14 innings pitched by
Anne Long are the second most in the NCAA this season.
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Anne Long recorded a career-high 13 strikeouts over a career-high 14 innings pitched. She improved to 15-5 on the season. She has thrown a complete game in each of her last five conference starts.
•
Karhys Pierce recorded a career-high four hits, extending her streak of reaching base safely to 14 games.
•
Olivia Elliott has reached base safely in 11 consecutive games with a hit today. Her seven at-bats tied a USF single-game record.
• The Bulls improved to 22-1 when they hold opponents to two or fewer runs.
• South Florida improved to 3-1 in extra-innings games.
Up Next
The Bulls hit the road for a three-game series in North Carolina. South Florida and East Carolina are set to open the series on Friday, April 17, at 5 p.m. on ESPN+.
Tickets:
Season tickets for the upcoming softball season are now available, starting at $65. Fans may also add a general admission baseball season ticket for an additional $25, providing access to all home baseball games. For more information or to purchase season tickets, visit the official website at gousfbulls.com or contact the ticket office at 1-800-Go-Bulls or click
HERE.
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About USF Softball
The South Florida softball program has been one of the most successful on campus, making 18 NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the Women's College World Series in 2012. Under head coach Ken Eriksen, who enters his 29th season in 2026 and has accumulated 1,171 wins, ranking seventh among active DI head softball coaches, USF has produced 10 NFCA All-Americans, two USA Softball Top 10 Players of the Year, and one NFCA Pitcher of the Year. In 2022, Georgina Corrick became the first player in softball history to earn the NCAA Pitching Triple Crown. She led the nation in ERA (0.51), Victories (37), and total strikeouts (418).
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