NAIA OPENING ROUND – ASHLAND BRACKET
(All games at University Field)
LIVE STREAMS | TICKETS

Monday's Games:
Game 1 – (2) Southeastern (Fla.) vs. (3) Reinhardt (Ga.), 11 a.m. | Live Stats
Game 2 – (1) Southern Oregon vs. (4) Vanguard (Calif.), 1:30 p.m. | Live Stats

Tuesday's Games:
Game 3 – G1 Winner vs. G2 Winner, 11 a.m.
Game 4 – G1 Loser vs. G2 Loser, 1:30 p.m. (loser eliminated)
Game 5 – G3 Loser vs. G4 Winner, 4 p.m. (loser eliminated)

Wednesday's Games:
Game 6 – G3 Winner vs. G5 Winner, 11 a.m. (championship)
Game 7 – If necessary, 1:30 p.m.

ASHLAND – It's been seven years since the Southern Oregon softball team made its national tournament debut, and the Raiders have long since shed the underdog label. As the top seed in the Ashland Bracket of the NAIA Championships Opening Round, they'll attempt to show why as they begin the hunt for a third national championship in four postseasons.

Double-elimination bracket play begins Monday at University Field with No. 2-seeded and No. 20-ranked Southeastern (Fla.) taking on No. 3 seed Reinhardt (Ga.) at 11 a.m. SOU, ranked No. 4 in the final NAIA Top 25, follows with a 1:30 p.m. contest against No. 4 seed Vanguard (Calif.). Those matchups will set the table for Tuesday's three-game slate, and the final round begins at 11 a.m. Wednesday.

The bracket winner will move on to Columbus, Ga., for the 10-team World Series from May 25-31. SOU is seeking its fifth berth in six seasons.

A look around the Ashland Bracket follows:

#1 SOUTHERN OREGON (42-11)
Ashland, Ore. | Cascade Conference (25-5, t-2nd)
NAIA Ranking: No. 4
Run Differential: 420-157 (+5.0/game)
Last 10: 7-3
Longest Streak: W9
Tournament History: The Raiders are no strangers to this stage, making their seventh consecutive Opening Round appearance under Jessica Pistole after never previously qualifying. They're hosting for the fifth straight postseason and topped the Southern Oregon Bracket (previously played in Medford) three times in a row until last season, when Grand View (Iowa) defeated them for the Opening Round title. The Raiders have totaled four NAIA World Series appearances – all since 2017 – and won back-to-back national championships in 2019 and '21 (COVID-19 erased the '20 postseason).
Notable: The Raiders' offense would stand out in any bracket – they lead the NAIA in runs per game (7.9), rank second in batting average (.377) and on-base percentage (.417), and third in slugging percentage (.547) and home runs (46) – but especially in this one, where no other team is among the top-50 nationally in runs scored. Riley Donovan, the 2021 World Series MVP and '22 NAIA Player of the Year, is the engine and in the midst of another monster season, leading the country in home runs (20) and slugging (.979) while sitting top-four in batting average (.486) and RBIs (76). Deja Acosta (.394, 14 XBH, 59 runs) and Cayla Williams (.451, 18 XBH, 48 RBIs) fortify the top of the lineup, and even the bottom two in the order – outfielders Lindsey Stripling and Sarah Kerling – have combined for a .352 average. The Raiders have three solid starting pitchers in Williams (17-5, 2.96 ERA), Katie Machado (18-3, 2.75 ERA) and Holly Fletcher (4-2, 3.44 ERA), but none have separated themselves as the clear top option.

#2 SOUTHEASTERN (33-16)
Lakeland, Fla. | Sun Conference (19-5, 2nd)
NAIA Ranking: No. 20
Run Differential: 225-123 (+2.1/game)
Last 10: 6-4
Longest Streak: W12
Tournament History: The Fire are following up on one of the deepest runs in team history after leaving last year's NAIA World Series with a fourth-place finish. In 2016, their only other World Series appearance, they were one win away from the championship round. This marks the team's sixth Opening Round berth; the Fire qualified four straight seasons from 2015-18, and were denied advancement by SOU in '17 when the Raiders defeated them in back-to-back games in the championship round of the Hattiesburg (Miss.) Bracket.  
Notable: In a bracket loaded with pitching, SEU's Claire Sekinger is the most proven big-game performer as just a sophomore. She stands at 14-5 with a 2.29 ERA, having accumulated 154 strikeouts in 153 innings, and a year ago earned a spot on the World Series all-tournament team after posting a 2.02 ERA over 27 2/3 innings in Columbus. Autumn Hunter (14-6, 1.81 ERA) is capable of lightening her load, and the staff as a whole owns the 31st-best ERA (2.02) in the country. Offensive production has not overwhelmed, but the Fire feature All-Sun first team honorees in speedster Chapel Cunningham (.380, 35 stolen bases), Leah Gonzalez (.379, 13 XBH, 37 RBIs) and Erica Stahl (.368, 20 XBH, 31 RBIs). The lineup suffered from the loss of All-American sophomore Riley Sanders in early March, and its slugging percentage (.377) ranks 127th in the NAIA.

#3 REINHARDT (35-11)
Waleska, Ga. | Appalachian Athletic Conference (26-2, 1st)
NAIA Ranking: NR (receiving votes)
Run Differential: 261-107 (+3.3/game)
Last 10: 8-2
Longest Streak: W15
Tournament History: The Eagles are Opening Round regulars, in it for the seventh time since the format originated in 2013. They won their brackets in the first two appearances – capping a run of four consecutive World Series appearances from 2011-14 – but haven't advanced since then. They topped out in 2014 by getting to the national semifinals. In 2021, their most recent Opening Round stint, they went 1-2 as a bracket host.
Notable: The Eagles are 9-9 against teams outside of the Appalachian Athletic Conference but rolled through the circuit, going 26-2 to win the regular-season title by posting a staggering 0.74 ERA on a .174 opponents' batting average in AAC contests. They boast the AAC Pitcher of the Year in junior Whitney Shepherd, who brings a 17-4 record and a 1.45 ERA into the tournament, having walked only 28 batters in 135 1/3 innings. Ally Andriano (9-4, 2.68 ERA) and Kylie Freije (5-3, 1.62 ERA) established themselves as dependable options in the circle, and Freije, the AAC Freshman of the Year, is also a .413 hitter. All-AAC infielder Emily Loveless (.431, 8 home runs, 48 RBIs) heads a lineup with the 39th-best on-base percentage (.390) in the NAIA. Their first-year coach, David Dews, led his previous school, Lindsey Wilson (Ky.), to three World Series in seven seasons.

#4 VANGUARD (26-28)
Costa Mesa, Calif. | Golden State Athletic Conference (11-13, 4th)
NAIA Ranking: NR
Run Differential: 201-196 (+0.1/game)
Last 10: 4-6
Longest Streak: L6
Tournament History: The Lions were selected to play in three straight Opening Rounds from 2017-19. They won their bracket in the third try, ending a 13-year World Series drought, and are back in the national postseason for the first time since. The team is seeking its sixth all-time World Series bid.
Notable: There were few signs that the Lions were primed for a run through the Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament, as they entered the postseason losers of seven of their final eight games and hovered around the .500 mark for most of the spring. Top-end pitching changed their trajectory, however, as they allowed just five runs over 32 tournament innings behind Brianna Williams (15-11, 1.74 ERA) and LeeAnne Miranda (6-5, 2.10 ERA). A light-hitting lineup has produced just a .267 batting average, but it is anchored by one of the top bats in the country: sophomore catcher Kaylie Williams, who was named the GSAC Player of the Year and enters the week with a .482 batting average, nine home runs, 28 total extra-base hits and 36 RBIs. Bianca Morales is the only other regular hitting over .300, and Gold Glove-winning center fielder Noni Chaves was an All-GSAC member with a .241 average.