GULFPORT — Alcorn’s State’s miracle run through the Southwestern Athletic Conference softball tournament came up just short of a championship.

Jazmine Dodd went 2-for-4 with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored, Jaeda Gardner was 3-for-3 with one RBI and two runs scored, and Alabama State defeated Alcorn State 8-1 to win the SWAC tournament championship on Friday.

Alcorn (14-18) won four consecutive games to reach the title game after losing its tournament opener. It would have had to have beaten Alabama State (19-27) twice to win the double-elimination tournament.

Alcorn scored five runs in the sixth inning and then held off a big rally by Southern University in the seventh to win 7-6 in an elimination game Friday morning. That put the Lady Braves into the championship round Friday afternoon, but they were never really in the game against Alabama State.

The Hornets scored an unearned run in the second inning to break a scoreless tie, then plated six runs in the third to blow it open. Dodd drove in two runs with a single, Alex Massie brought in two more with a double, and Gardner capped it off with an RBI single for a 7-0 lead.

Alcorn’s only run came on an RBI double by Chloey Morgan in the fifth.

Alabama State won for the third time in six consecutive SWAC championship game appearances, and earned an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament.