SOFTBALL UPCOMING:
Monday, May 16 
Game 1: (2) Madonna University (Mich.) vs. (3)Columbia College (Mo.) @ 3:00 PM
Game 2: (1) Freed-Hardeman University (Tenn.) vs. (4) Friends (Kan.) @ 6:00 PM

Tuesday, May 17
Game 3: Winner Game #1vs. Winner Game #2 @ 12:00 PM
Game 4: Loser Game #1 vs. Loser Game #2 (Elimination Game) @ 3:00 PM
Game 5: Loser Game #3 vs. Winner Game #4 (Elimination Game) @ 6:00 PM

Wednesday, May 18
Game 6: Winner Game #3 vs. Winner Game #5 @ 3:00 PM
Game 7: Winner Game #6 vs. Loser Game #6 (If Necessary) @ 6:00 PM

2022 NAIA SOFTBALL OPENING ROUND: The Opening Round is a double-elimination tournament. The bracket champion advances to the NAIA World Series May 26-June 1 in Columbus, Ga.


WATCH / LIVE STATS: Madonna's Opening Round games can be watched here along with live stats for each game here.

LAST TIME OUT:  In a rematch with last weekend's series that clinched the WHAC regular season Championship for Madonna, the Crusaders let up two early runs in the top of the first. In the bottom half, the Crusaders came back to take the lead. Popko opened the scoring by singling to score Veronica Pezzoni. Gauthier then followed that up with a single of her own to score Chylece Cluck. Later in the inning, Gauthier scored to make it 3-2, when Martin reached on an error.

The game stayed 1-1 until the top of the fourth, with Aquinas scoring one more to take the lead. They led until the Crusaders' last at-bats in the bottom of the seventh. With the bases loaded and two outs, Martin walked, which scored Pezzoni as the tying run. Next up was Gilbert, who walked it off for the Crusaders, singling to right to score Gauthier. 

Aquinas took the lead in the top of the third, and the Saints pitching and defense kept the Crusaders' bats quiet. Madonna would 5-3 and move to a 31-7 record on the year. 

SCOUTING FHU: The No.1 seeded Lady Lions of Freed-Hardeman University (Tenn.) are sitting at a 48-3 record and are the No. 3 ranked team in the NAIA. Coming into the NAIA Opening Rounds the Lady Lions are on a 16-game winning streak, outsourcing their opponents 117-25. This season, the Lady Lions have been led by #7 Sophie Dunavant the Mid-South Conference (MSC) Player of the Year, and their pitching staff. Dunavant led the team with a .446 batting average and recorded a team-high 59 RBIs. She was third on the team with seven home runs. The senior also led the team in extra-base hits with 29. Dunavant's 59 runs driven in are currently the 11th most in the NAIA. 

The Lady Lion pitching staff is one of the best if not the best in the country. #21 Britney Adair was named the Mid-South Conference Pitcher of the year, she appeared in 19 games posting a 15-0 record with a 0.93 ERA over 105.1 innings pitched. The junior has only given up 38 hits on the year and has the seventh-lowest ERA in the NAIA. She also leads the country in strikeouts per seven innings with 12.49. Next is #55 Chloe Winters who has appeared in 23 games posting a 15-2 record with a 0.83 ERA over 109.2 innings pitched. The sophomore has the third-lowest ERA in the country and only has let up 77 hits on the year. The Lady Lions also have #1 Morgan Crawford who has appeared in 20 games posting a 13-0 record with a 1.32 ERA over 101.0 innings pitched. The senior's ERA is currently ranked as the 20th best in the country. 

The Lady Lions had #6 Kennedy Harris and #9 Caitlin Mitchell announced to the All-Conference First Team. Harris was second on the team in batting average with an average of .395. She also leads the team in stolen bases with 34, home runs with 11, and is second on the team in RBIs with 41. Mitchell has a .357 average with 5 home runs and 30 RBIs. 

SCOUTING CC: The No. 3 seeded Cougars of Columbia College (Mo.) are sitting at a 33-10 record and are the No.18 ranked team in the NAIA. The Cougars played a tough non-conference schedule playing six top-20 teams and started conference play with a 13-10 record. Since then the Cougars now come into the Opening Round on a 23-game winning streak. The Cougars are led by the American Midwest Conference (AMC) Player of the Year, #20 Karolina Arbova, and the AMC Pitcher of the Year #18 Ella Schouten. Arbova comes into the Opening Rounds leading the team in batting average (.463), hits (58), and RBIs (48). In the circle, Schouten was dominant all year. The freshman doubled as the AMC Freshman of the Year as well as the pitcher of the Year. Schouten has appeared in 23 games posting a 17-3 record with a 1.23 ERA over 119.1 innings pitched. #7 Taylor Barnes, #10 Lexi Dickerson, and #25 Athen Wheeler were also named to the AMC All-Conference First Team. Barnes sits third on the team with a .394 average and fourth in home runs with four and fifth for RBIs with 30. Dickerson is the Cougars' number two pitcher as she has pitched 77.1 innings and has an 11-3 record with a 1.45 ERA. Lastly, there's Wheeler who has one of the biggest bats on the team. She leads the team in home runs (15), second in RBIs (41), and has a .370 average.

SCOUTING FU: The No. 4 seeded Falcons of Friends University (Kan.) sit at a 30-19 record. The Falcons are led by #8 Priscilla Mora who leads the teams in home runs (10), and RBIs (46). Mora also has the third-best batting average on the team with a .359 average. In the circle, the Falcons have #4 Laila Spracklen. She has appeared in 31 games and posted an 18-8 record with a 2.29 ERA. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: In Crusaders' 38 games, they are led by the WHAC Player of the Year Veronica Pezzoni and Pitcher of the Year Maeson Schlaud. Pezzoni comes into the Opening Round with the second-highest batting average in the country with a .508 average. Pezzoni is first on the team in hits (60) and steals (31). Schlaud has been dominate from the start this season. The sophomore comes in with a 21-2 record, a 1.20 ERA over 1501.2 innings pitched. She has just 208 strikeouts on the year which is the 11th most in the country and her ERA is iin the top 14. Not many teams can say they have two Player of the Year caliber players on a roster. However, the Crusaders have Kattie Popko who was the 2021 WHAC Player of the Year and made a case to win it this year as well. Popko comes into the Opening Round hitting .483 which is good enough for the eighth-best average in the country. She has a team-highs of home runs (6), RBIs (47), and extra-base hits (20). Newcomers Alissa Gauthier and Chylece Cluck have made an immediate impact for the Crusaders as well. Gauthier is tied for third for hits with Amy Clegg with 30 and is second in stolen bases with 18. Cluck is right being Gauthier with 26 hits on a .306 average and has been a crucial part of the infield on defense. 

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