TURLOCK, Calif. – The No. 14 nationally-ranked Western Washington University softball team made another big statement completing the Tournament of Champions with a perfect 5-0 record.

WWU put the finishing touches on a perfect weekend in Turlock, California defeating San Francisco State 2-0, closing out a 5-0 run through the 18-team tournament were the team navigated several rain and lightning delays and a game that finished after midnight to continue its great start to the season going 22-4 through the first 26 games.

Western recorded its second 5-0 performance at the Tournament of Champions, also accomplishing a perfect record in 2019. Due to an unbalanced number of games played by the 18 teams in the tournament with a majority of games rained out Saturday, no official tournament champion was named.

The Vikings closed out a brilliant pitching performance in the tournament with freshman Alli Kimball throwing a four-hit shutout against the Gators. Kimball earned Tournament MVP honors going 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA, not allowing a run across her three starts and 19.0 innings. As a team WWU's pitching trio of Kimball (3-0, 0.00 ERA), junior Joie Baker (2-0, 0.58 ERA) and freshman Kiana Kong (0-0, 1.75 ERA) combined for a 0.40 ERA allowing just two earned runs in 35.0 innings in the tournament.

Western scored the only two runs of the game in the top of the 2nd, capitalizing on a pair of SFSU errors to push both runs across the plate with two outs. Junior left fielder Lexi Barcomb singled up the middle and the first run scored on the play on a throwing error. The second run came in to score on the following play on a fielding error by the SFSU shortstop.

That was all the run support Kimball needed, allowing just three singles over the final six innings. The freshman from Gig Harbor finished with five strikeouts and no walks while needing just 96 pitches to record her second shutout of the season. Barcomb went 2-for-3 for her second multi-hit game of the season. All seven of the Vikings hits were singles in the game.

With its fifth consecutive victory, WWU completed its non-conference portion of the regular-season schedule going 20-2 and went undefeated in 14 games played in the state of California.

SFSU (12-15) starting pitcher Mari Takeda Bajan (5-5) was saddled with the loss allowing seven hits and two unearned runs in the complete-game effort. Leadoff hitter Kai DeLeon and designated player Marissa Jordan each had two hits to account for all of the Gators offense.

The Vikings (22-4, 2-2 GNAC) return to Great Northwest Athletic Conference play next week hosting Saint Martin's in a four-game series at Viking Field in Bellingham, with doubleheaders scheduled for Friday (March 29) and Saturday (March 30) beginning at noon. The complete 2024 WWU Softball schedule can be viewed online at WWUVikings.com.

WWU finished the 2024 Tournament of Champions with a perfect 5-0 record to claim the team title in the 18-team tournament. The Vikings have played in all 21 Tournament of Champions hosted by Stanislaus State University and has combined to go 71-56 all-time at the TOC. Western was also a perfect 5-0 at the 2019 edition of the tournament and has posted a .500 or better record in 14 of 21 trips to Turlock, including eight of the last nine dating back to the 2014 season.

Here is a look at the 21st Tournament of Champions All-Tournament Team, with freshman pitcher Alli Kimball earning MVP honors going 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA (0 R, 19.0 IP, 3 GS) and junior Emma Andrewjeski-Ramirez landing a coveted spot on the 14-player all-tournament team batting .333 (5-for-15) with one home run and seven RBI. Kimball joins Emily Benson (2019) as the two Vikings to earn MVP honors at the Tournament of Champions.

• Alli Kimball, Western Washington - MVP
• Emma Andrewjeski-Ramirez, Western Washington
• Paige Donnelly, Cal State San Marcos
• Mikaela Ferreira, Stanislaus State
• Bri Goris, Cal State San Bernardino
• Victoria Macias, Hawai'i Hilo
• Sasha Martello, Stanislaus State
• Rylee Nishimoto, Sonoma State
• Mariah Ramirez, Cal State Dominguez Hills
• Jay Ross, Cal State Dominguez Hills
• Jayline Sloss, Cal State San Marcos
• Alyssa Smokey, Cal Poly Humboldt
• Ashlee Toy, Cal State East Bay
• Samantha Vargas, Cal State San Bernardino

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2024 season: