TIGER SOFTBALL ALL SET FOR THE OPENING ROUND OF THE NAIA SOFTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – The Olivet Nazarene University softball clinched its third-straight NAIA Softball National Championship appearance as the CCAC Tournament runners-up. The Tigers will start their quest for a World Series title as they open up play on Monday, May 16th against the Indiana Wesleyan University Wildcats in Marion, Ind. at 1 p.m. CST.
TALE OF THE TAPE ON INDIANA WESLEYAN
The Tigers played the Wildcats in last year's Opening Round in Bowling Green, Ky. The Tigers prevailed in that matchup winning, 2-1. Notably, Emily Blucker came in the game in the fifth inning and mowed down the Wildcats with six strikeouts. ONU starting pitcher Miranda Southall hit a two-run double in the game to give the Tigers the win.
This season, Indiana Wesleyan posted a record of 50-8 including going 31-5 in the Crossroads League. The Wildcats earned the number one seed in the Opening Round as the Tigers pulled the four seed. Jennah Yost leads the Wildcats with a .407 batting average while Miranda Wehrle leads the team with 18 homers and 68 RBIs. Kamryn Buck and Elisa Koshy also combine for 21 home runs and 77 RBIs. In the circle, Alyssa Wagner leads the team with a 21-3 record, posting a 1.21 ERA, and fanning 185 batters. Danielle Munn and Emma Etter-Cox also combine for a record of 18-5 in the circle.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Tigers' next game will come from the other side of the bracket which features the Midland University Warriors and the Lindsey Wilson College Blue Raiders. Midland comes into the Opening Round with a record of 36-10 (19-3 GPAC) while Lindsey Wilson posted a record of 38-15 (22-8 MSC).
RECAPING THE CCAC TOURNAMENT
The Tigers had to play from behind in the beginning of the Tournament as they fell to the Fighting Bees of Saint Ambrose in their first game, 4-2. The Tigers then bounced back and defeated IUSB, 10-1, Roosevelt, 5-2, Cardinal Stritch, 1-0, and St. Francis, 9-0, to advance to the Championship game against Saint Xavier. In that game, the Tigers fell, 12-0.
ALL-CCAC HONORS
The Tigers saw six of their players get recognized on the CCAC All-Conference list. Pitcher Kori Fricke was selected as the Pitcher of the Year and a first-team All-CCAC Selection. The Tiger right-handed pitcher posted a 17-6 record with a 2.63 ERA in 29 appearances. Additionally, she worked 152 innings and fanned 68 batters. Rounding out the first-team selections were Megan Mann and Haley Dobson. Mann turned in a good season batting .390 with seven homers and 42 RBIs, while Dobson bats .395 with five homers, 42 RBIs, and 18 doubles.
Emily Blucker, Matti Lanie, and Zoe Oshiro also earned second-team All-CCAC recognition. In the circle, Blucker posts 9-2 record with a 2.63 ERA in 27 appearances. In 93 innings, Blucker fanned 93 batters against only 23 walks. Lanie and Oshiro are also impressive this season in the batter's box. A native of Momence, Ill., Lanie carries a .388 batting average with a homer, 20 RBIs, and six doubles. A native of Pearl City, Hi., Oshiro notches a .394 batting average with one homer, 28 RBIs, and 13 doubles.
TALE OF TWO SEASONS
The Tigers kicked off the 2021 season with a 9-7 record as they split games with Indiana Tech and went 8-6 on their Spring Break Trip. Since then, the Tigers went 24-6 and carried a team ERA of 2.13. ONU had winning streaks of seven (March 21st-April 11) and 10 (April 20-April 28th). To finish the season, the Tigers have won 14 out their last 16 games.
HOW TO FOLLOW YOUR TIGERS
Fans can follow you Tigers via the links below. If you are able to attend the games, also below is the ticket information.
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*Contact: Sam Viebrock, Sports Information Director, stviebrock@olivet.edu