The top-seeded OLLU softball team (50-3) will face fourth-seed Cottey College at 2:30 p.m. today in the NAIA Softball National Championship Opening Round at the St. Mary’s University Softball Field.
OLLU is competing in the San Antonio Bracket, one of two brackets featuring four teams. The eight remaining host cities will feature five teams. The winners of each bracket will advance to the 43rd Annual NAIA Softball National Championship, which will be held May 23-29 at the South Commons Complex in Columbus, Ga.
Head Coach Bruce Lenington commented, “The exciting part of this time of year is that everyone has the same record, same ranking and same goal. Our players are ready to compete and leave it all on the field.”
The Saints were runners-up in the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Championship Tournament after capturing the regular-season title with a perfect 24-0 record. This year, they received the No. 1 rank in every regular-season NAIA Softball Coaches’ Poll.
After losing to Central Washington in early February, the Saints went on a 45-game win streak before losing twice to LSU-Alexandria in the conference tournament.
The Saints are led by Cassandra Valdez, who has 57 runs, four triples, 14 home runs, 42 walks and 28 stolen bases. She also leads the team in OBP with .529 and SLG with .824. Kayla Dreese leads the Saints in hits with 56, in doubles with 13 and batting average with .427. Natalie Rodriguez leads the team in 44 RBIs.
OLLU’s pitching ranks among the nation’s best. Cassandra Valdez has an ERA of 0.67, second-best in the NAIA. She has logged nine shutouts, three saves and a record of 23-1. She has 228 strikeouts. Ava Hernandez has an ERA of 1.41 with a record of 19-2. She has eight shutouts and 99 strikeouts.