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PREVIEW: Madonna Softball Set to Make Another NAIA Tournament Appearance

5/10/2023 1:08:00 PM

By: Hunter Chovanec
LIVONIA, Mich. -- The Madonna University softball team earned an automatic berth to the NAIA National Tournament after winning the WHAC Tournament title last week. The Crusaders will head to Williamsburg, Kentucky for the NAIA Opening Round and are making their seventh tournament appearance in program history. In the double-elimination bracket with third-seeded Madonna is third-ranked and host school University of Cumberlands, 16th-ranked Indiana Wesleyan University, and the University of South Carolina Beaufort. 

Madonna finished the regular season 36-12 overall and 15-7 in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference. The Crusaders ran through the conference tournament with a perfect 4-0 record and defeated Concordia University (Mich.) in the final 2-0. Madonna is led by star pitcher Maeson Schlaud. She has started 27 games so far this season, posting a 23-4 record in 194.2 innings pitched. She's struck out 238 batters so far this year and has recorded 1.37 ERA. For her efforts this season, Schlaud was named WHAC Pitcher of the Year and First Team All-WHAC. Offensively, Madonna is led by First Team All-WHAC performer Bailey Martin. The junior catcher/third baseman hit .382 and drove in 29 runs during the regular season. Also leading the way is senior outfielder Jenna Gilbert, who was named Second Team All-WHAC after hitting .358 with 24 RBIs in 46 games. It is the second straight appearance for second year Madonna head coach Ron Pezzoni. 

Host Cumberlands finished the regular season 44-3-1 and 21-0 in the Mid-South Conference. The Patriots won both the MSC Regular Season and Tournament titles and were ranked third in the final NAIA National Polls. They are led offensively by Makenzie Keatts, who hit .419 with nine home runs and 53 RBIs. In the pitching circle, Talli Burgess posted an 18-0 record for Cumberlands this season in 123.0 innings pitched. The Patriots will be the number one seed in the bracket. Cumberlands is led by sixth year head coach Bailey Dillender. 

Madonna will first take on second-seed Indiana Wesleyan University on Monday. The Wildcats earned an at-large berth and are making their eighth tournament appearance. They finished the year with a 40-13 overall record and a 28-8 mark in Crossroads League play. The Wildcats were eliminated from their conference tournament with a 5-4 loss to Taylor University last week. Jennah Yost leads the team in hitting with a .402 average, while Ashton Whitman is the RBI leader with 43. For power the Wildcats look to Elisa Koshy, who has 11 home runs this season. The Wildcats are led in the pitching circle by Alyssa Wagner and Emma Etter-Cox. Wagner is 21-6 this season with a 1.50 ERA, while Cox is 16-3 with a 2.55 ERA. IWU is led by head coach Steve Babinski. 

Last but not least is the fourth-seeded USC Beaufort Sharks. Despite the 14-43 overall record and 3-24 conference mark, they got hot at the right time and finished runner-up in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament to earn an automatic berth. They are led by Ashlyn Alte at the plate with a .329 average and six home runs and 38 RBIs. Cierra Kinlaw led the pitchers with an 8-12 record and a 4.69 ERA. The Sharks are led by head coach Codee Yeske and are making their fourth NAIA Tournament appearance and first since 2019. 

The NAIA Tournament gets underway Monday, May 15th. Madonna and IWU will play first at 1:00 PM, before the Patriots and Sharks follow at 3:30 PM.  

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