STRATFORD -- In the bottom of the second inning, Rachele Fico found herself in a very unusual position. She was losing.
Lauralton Hall's Bridget Gates had just taken a Fico fastball and crushed it over the right-center field fence for a 1-0 lead.
It was just the second earned run that Fico had surrendered all season in 153 innings to that point. 
But that just made her pitch -- and hit -- even better.
The LSU-bound right-hander allowed just one other Crusader to reach base (a hit batter) and
struck out 14 of the game's final 19 hitters as the Panthers captured their fifth consecutive SWC championship -- and won their 74th straight game -- Sunday night before a crowd of 1,000 at DeLuca Field.
"It's incredible. It's just goes to show what kind of program we have,"
Fico said after improving to 23-0 this season and 102-2 for her career. "I knew we were going to score. It didn't matter how many runs they scored, I knew we'd outscore them."
Fico had two of Masuk's five hits and scored the tying run in the top of the third. On the mound, she finished with a one-hitter while striking out 17.
"Rachele is the best pitcher in the nation," Masuk coach Jacqui Sheftz said.
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