The Salisbury softball team opened the best-of-three NCAA Championship series against Tufts with a 2-1 victory before falling 6-0 in a marathon 14-inning contest in game two to set up a decisive third-game showdown Tuesday in Tyler, Texas. 

Tuesday's championship game is slated for noon ET. 

Salisbury picked up the key first-game victory, coming from behind to grab the 2-1 win.

The Sea Gulls (44-4) trailed the Jumbos (46-4) 1-0 entering the fourth, and sophomore Paige Knussman evened the game with a solo home run to left field with two outs in the frame. 

Following the home run, the Sea Gulls loaded the bases with two outs, and Molly Simpson delivered an RBI single to shallow left field to give Salisbury the 2-1 lead. 

The Jumbos would get four runners on base in their final four trips to plate, but none would get past second base as Rachel Johnson struck out five to collect her 29th win of the year, getting the Sea Gulls within one victory of a national championship.

In a marathon second game, senior Kathryn Larson got the start on the mound for the Sea Gulls and retired the first nine batters before giving up a leadoff single in the fourth. The Jumbos would load the bases in the inning, with two outs, but Larson would get a groundout to end the threat.

Tufts put runners in scoring position again in the fifth, but to no avail. Michelle Cooprider drove a grounder up the middle for a leadoff single and Larson got a grounder off the bat of Carrie Copacino to Simpson at second base. Simpson spun to try to tag Cooprider who was passing behind her, but could not apply the tag and both runners were safe.

A groundout would push the runners into scoring position, and Larson got a comebacker to keep the Jumbos at second and third. The inning came to an end with a Keenan fly out.

Salisbury would put runners on with two outs in each of the first two innings, off Tufts pitcher Allyson Fournier, but could not get a run across. The Sea Gulls would put at least one runner on in the first three innings before Fournier retired 11 straight. The Tufts pitcher worked all 21 innings in the day, throwing 284 pitches.

With the game still scoreless in the seventh, Salisbury came up with its best chance to score in regulation, as Knussman singled to lead off the inning and move to second on a sacrifice bunt. But a strikeout and a fly out sent the game to extra innings.

Tufts loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the eighth, but Larson finished the inning with a groundout.

Salisbury had its best scoring chance of the game in the eighth inning; Dorsey and pinch hitter Molly Gigioli reached base to start the inning and advanced into scoring position on a sacrifice bunt, but Salisbury could not push the winning run across after loading the bases.

The game remained scoreless until the 14th, when the Jumbos would score six times off Johnson and Larson to claim the win, sending the series to a final day.