CHICAGO (5/11/2019) -- Junior Liz Murphy supplied the pitching, senior Kori Keyes provided offense and defense and seniors Jordan Manno and Courtney Gilbert produced the championship run as the University of Detroit Mercy softball team is heading to the NCAA Tournament by winning the Horizon League Championship on Saturday.

The second-seeded Titans (31-26) needed to win two games over top-seeded UIC (32-23) on the Flames home field - the same team that beat them 8-0 in the semifinals -  to win the title and they did that with marvelous pitching performance in coming up with a 2-0 win in game one and a 1-0 victory in game two. 

Murphy was absolutely dominating as she earned her third win in the postseason throwing two complete game shutouts on the day. In 14 innings today facing elimination, Murphy did now allow a run and scattered just eight hits and seven walks with nine strikeouts against one of the best offensive teams all year in the regular season champion Flames. 

In the entire tournament, she was 3-0 with a .62 ERA as she allowed just three runs and 17 hits in 22.2 third innings, walking 11 with 19 strikeouts as she was selected the tournament's MVP. 

Keyes had the two-run single in the first inning in game one to give the Titans a 2-0 lead and Manno and Gilbert came up with back-to-back doubles in the fourth in game two to give Detroit Mercy's its one-run lead in the second. Keyes also came up with a great diving catch off a bunt when it looked like UIC would have runners on second and third with just one out in the second in game two. 

Gilbert, Keyes and Manno were all named to the All-Tournament Team. Gilbert hit .417 and had a homer and 5 RBI, while Manno batted .286 with the go-ahead run and was the leader on defense from her catcher's position. Keyes hit .267 and had the game-winning RBI in game one and the great defensive play in game two. 

Detroit Mercy was the second seed entering the tournament, but was 0-3 during the regular season against UIC. The Titans are now 31-26 on the season, the most wins since their school-record 39 in 1991 and the fifth most in school history. 

Head coach John Conway - who is retiring after this season - took over the program and went just 10-40 in his first season in 2015, but built the program into championship status. 

The Titans won the first three conference championships in Horizon League history - then known as the MCC - in 1987, 1988 and 1989 and also claimed the title in 1992. The fifth title is now the second most in league history behind UIC's nine. Detroit Mercy last made the finals in 1998, which was the deepest the team has been in the tournament outside their semifinals appearance in 2017.

Detroit Mercy will find out its NCAA Tournament destination on Sunday night as the Division I Selection Show will air live on ESPN2 at 9 p.m. 

Detroit Mercy 2  - UIC 0 
Murphy set the tone for the day with some dominant pitching allowing just three hits and two walks, while striking out five in a complete game shutout as the Titans forced a championship elimination game with a 2-0 win over top-seeded UIC.

The Titans had just four hits in the contest, but knocked in the only two runners in the game in the first as they recorded three of those hits in the first frame.

With two outs, senior Courtney Gilbert singled to center field and that was followed by a pair of walks to load the bases by sophomore Ellie Boteler and junior Leena Mortensen. Senior Kori Keyes then came up with a two-run single through the left side to give the Titans a 2-0 lead, the only runs of the game.

Murphy brought her "A" game to the circle, stranding a UIC runner in the first and then setting the Flames down in order in the second and third. UIC had two runners on with two outs in the fourth, but Murphy was able to get the final out on a ground ball.

In the fifth, the Flames had two runners on again with two outs, but Murphy was able to get out of that on a pop-up, while in the sixth, UIC had a runner on second with one out, but she would retire the next two batters. 

Detroit Mercy 1  - UIC 0 
Nearly a five-hour rain delay didn't derail Murphy as the All-Horizon League hurler took the ball and threw another complete game shutout in a 1-0 victory in the championship elimination game.

Murphy gave up just five hits and walked five batters, while striking out five UIC hitters, including two in the final inning in the leadoff and clean-up hitters in the Flames order. 

The seventh inning was full of intensity and pressure as the top-seeded Flames did end up getting runners on first and second with two outs, but with the count full at 3-2, she threw a fastball right by UIC's Alyssa Griman and the celebration began.

UIC looked like it was going to be in position for a big inning as the Flames had first and second with no outs and tried to sacrifice bunt the runners into scoring position, but Keyes stormed in and made a great diving catch to end that and then Murphy retired the next two hitters.

Detroit Mercy struck for its run in the fourth as Manno ripped a one-out double to right-center and that was followed by a RBI double to right field by Gilbert. 

The Flames had first and second with one out in the fifth, but once again she was able to buckle down and get the next two batters out.

In the sixth, UIC had runners on first and second with two outs when she got out of that jam with a strikeout.