The Northridge softball team beat Goshen 1-0 Saturday to win the Elkhart Central Sectional title.

ELKHART – The wait was well worth it for the Northridge softball team Saturday.

The Raiders returned to the diamond at Elkhart Central and wrapped up a sectional championship.

Northridge, which saw its finale with league foe Goshen halted by the thunderstorms in the sixth inning Friday night, beat the RedHawks 1-0 in the title tilt of the Class 4-A Central Sectional.

Northridge (20-7) gets to host top-ranked Penn (26-1) in a one-game regional at 6 p.m. Tuesday in Middlebury. The Kingsmen, who are ranked No. 18 nationally, were state runner-up last season.

Penn beat the Raiders 10-0 on April 10 at Northridge.

Northridge needed just 26 minutes Saturday to finish off Goshen, but the final two innings had plenty of drama.

The Raiders got a pair of great defensive plays from shortstop Sami Deisler to end Goshen scoring chances in the final pair of frames. With the bases loaded and one out in the sixth, Deisler snared a founder, tagged the runner going to third and fired to first for a double play. Desiree also made a diving play to force a RedHawk runner out at second for the final out of the game.

Goshen also had a great chance to score in the seventh. A RedHawk runner was thrown out at home by  Northridge first baseman Ashley Becker on a suicide squeeze bunt attempt.

Allison Hostetler fired a three-hitter to outduel Goshen’s Kate Atkinson for the pitching win. Hostetler allowed just three hits and drove in the game’s lone run in the second inning Friday night with an RBI single. Her hit scored Sara Troyer, who had tripled.

Hostetler and Troyer each had two hits for the Raiders.

Caitlyn Doyle led Goshen with two hits, including a double.

Northridge claims the 16th sectional title in program history and first since 2013.

Goshen, which lost 13-0 to Northridge and beat the Raiders 4-3 in a pair of Northern Lakes Conference regular-season meetings, finishes at 13-14.