Laurier softball wrapped up its regular season with another three day weekend of doubleheaders October 2-4, 2026.  The Golden Hawks came into the weekend atop the Western Conference but tough games against division foes would challenge that position.
 
First up Friday night was the Western Mustangs. The Mustangs have always proved to be a tough opponent for the Golden Hawks who have a 7-35 lifetime record against Western.  However, the last time these two teams met was the gold medal game of the 2025 Provincial finals in which Laurier prevailed to take the OUS title.
 
Laurier wasted no time setting the tone early in game one, scoring three runs in the bottom of the first on a Kendall Rainey three run double. They added three more runs in the bottom of the second on a couple of Mustang errors and then three more in the third powered by a Maddy Halstead two run double. The Mustangs did get on the board in the fourth inning with three runs of their own, however, the Golden Hawks answered back with a single run and shut down the Mustang offence in the fifth for a 10-3 run-rule victory - the largest margin of victory ever for the Golden Hawks against Western, with Maryn Partridge picking up the win in the circle.
 
Game two continued as the first game with Laurier jumping out to an early 2-0 lead, however, that lead was short-lived as Western immediately answered back with two of their own. The two teams would trade runs in the third before the Golden Hawks bats exploded for nine runs in the top of the fifth. A series of singles, walks and Western errors was capped off by a massive grand slam home run by Amy Hughes to give Laurier a 12-3 lead. Unfortunately, the lead proved insufficient as a series of three Laurier relief pitchers struggled to get outs and Western rallied back with four runs in the fifth and six runs in the sixth to ultimately prevail 13-12.
 
Saturday saw the last home games of the season for Laurier and they used the opportunity of the games with Windsor to recognize their four graduating seniors: Maddy Halstead, Amy Hughes, Natalie Donelle and Annika Pocock.The four Laurier seniors managed to amass an impressive 31 hits, 24 rbi's and 33 runs scored on their final weekend of the regular season.
 
Game one began as a low scoring pitcher's duel as Cassie Dollard and the Windsor pitcher kept both teams off the scoreboard through the first four innings. In the fifth, a series of four Lancer hits would give them the lead 4-0. They added two more runs in the fifth before Laurier got on the board in the seventh with a pair of runs of their own. It wasn't enough, however, as Windsor handed Laurier a 6-2 loss and the first time all season the Golden Hawks had lost two in a row.
 
In Game two, a pair of singles from Millie Blamauer and Jules Merritt would stake Laurier to a 1-0 lead. First Year Ella Shantz led off the Laurier second with a single and was followed by five more singles to give Laurier a 6-0 lead. They added four more runs in the fourth inning to move out to a 10-0 lead. The Lancers would get on the board with a pair of runs in the bottom of the 4th but that was all they could muster as starter Maryn Partridge shut them down in the fifth to secure the 12-2 run-rule victory and move to 9-1 on the season in the circle.

Sunday was the close of the season for both Laurier and Guelph as Laurier looked to continue its winning streak and secure top spot for playoffs and the Gryphons needed some wins to keep their playoff hopes alive. Laurier left the bases loaded in the top of the first as the Gryphons centre fielder made a diving catch to keep them off the scoreboard. The Golden Hawks came right back in the top of the second, however, as a Millie Blamauer double got Laurier on the board. Amy Hughes added a triple to score two more, followed by a Zoe Ramkalawan single to make it 5-0. Hughes stayed hot the next inning with an inside-the-park home run, and a Lauren Artt triple made it 9-0. First-year pitcher Lily Wynberg picked up the win for the Golden Hawks in an 11-4 final.
 
Game two was a closer game as the two teams traded runs over the first two innings before a combination of Hughes, Halstead, and Merritt hits put Laurier up 4-2. Relief pitcher Cass Dollard came on in the 5th inning and, with two runners on in the 7th inning, managed to hold off the Gryphons to give the Golden Hawks the victory. The win secured Laurier the Western Conference title and the top seed heading into the provincials in Ottawa on October 17 and 18.
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The Golden Hawks headed to Durham October 9 - 11, 2026 to compete in the Canadian Collegiate Softball Championships featuring the top 8 collegiate programs in Canada, where they secured the bronze medal. A full recap is forthcoming.