MARION, Ind. -- History continues to build this season for the Indiana Wesleyan University softball team.

This year's squad has already broken the single season record for wins in a season before beginning the Mid-Central College Conference Tournament on Wednesday. Four games later the Wildcats won the program's second ever MCC Tournament championship and in the process earned it's first ever bid to the NAIA National Tournament.

"This is such a special team," said Indiana Wesleyan head coach Steve Babinski. "We have a special group of seniors that everybody was playing for."

Indiana Wesleyan (44-11) needed to defeat No. 4-seed Marian (Ind.) University twice on Thursday to complete the perfect run through the tournament. IWU defeated Marian 6-0 at 10 a.m. in the winner's bracket final. The two teams would meet again at 7 p.m. in the tournament championship which Indiana Wesleyan won 7-3.

"This team today is a much better team that when we started," continued Babinski. "I'm just so proud of them, not just because we won, but the way we did it. This team has a 10th player and it's called chemistry. When we have that, we are tough to beat."

Abbie Forman came up huge in her final games at Wildcat Field. She pitched complete games in both contests versus Marian on Friday and allowed just three runs -- one earned -- in 14 innings. She gave up just nine hits to a Marian squad that led the league in hitting at .331 and finished the day with only three walks while striking out 15.

In the opening game, Forman pitched a 3-hit complete game shutout. She had nine strikeouts in the win and allowed just one hit over the final three innings.

Indiana Wesleyan scored the only run it would need in the third inning when centerfielder Tamara Davis drilled a 2-out home run over the right field fence. With the way Forman was pitching, Indiana Wesleyan put the game out of reach in the fifth inning with three more runs for a 4-0 lead. Davis had an RBI single and first baseman Jessica Hull produced the clutch two-out, two run double to put IWU up four.

Rightfielder Erin Moeller added an RBI single in the sixth and catcher Katie Smith added a RBI double in the seventh to cap the scoring.

Davis finished 2-for-4 with a home run, a steal, three runs, and two RBIs while Smith was also 2-for-4 with a run batted in.

In the championship game, Marian jumped out on top with a run in the first inning. Indiana Wesleyan gained the lead with a three spot in the third inning, and it was a lead they would not surrender. Smith put Indiana Wesleyan on top with a two-run double and she would later score on a Dana Runyan single to deep right-center field for a 3-1 advantage.

The Wildcats added insurance runs in the fifth inning with three more runs. Hull produced the big hit in the inning with a 3-run home run over the centerfield fence as the Wildcats extended the lead to 6-1.

Indiana Wesleyan took a 7-1 lead into the seventh before Marian put together their first strong inning of the day versus Forman. Marian scored two runs on an error that would have finished the game as the lead was now 7-3. A hit batter put two on and suddenly the tying run was on deck, and that batter was Emily Gwaltney, who hit multiple home runs during the tournament. But Forman was able to avoid that situation with a swinging strike three to end the game, leaving the tying run on deck.

Forman allowed three runs -- one earned -- in seven innings of work. She struck out six while scattering six hits and two walks. Hull was 2-for-3 with the big 3-run home run while Smith was 1-for-3 with a walk, a double and two runs scored.

The MCC Tournament victory was the second in program history. Indiana Wesleyan defeated Bethel (Ind.) College to win the first championship in 2005. Conference's did not have automatic bids yet as Indiana Wesleyan did not advance to the NAIA National Tournament after losing in a regional tournament.

Indiana Wesleyan will now await the draw for the NAIA National Tournament. The tournament is set up with four-team pools with one team advancing to the final tournament bracket after round robin pool play.