COLUMBIA, Ky. – The Corban University softball team is playing in the NAIA Softball National Championship Opening Round for the third time in program history, beginning on Monday, and this time around, the Warriors are ready to make history. Having never advanced out of the NAIA Opening Round, Corban will look to do so as the No. 2 seed in Kentucky while vying for a spot at the NAIA Softball World Series.
Live Video --- Live Stats --- Bracket --- Tournament Central --- Media Notes
Corban, which received the Cascade Collegiate Conference's (CCC) first automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament thanks to winning the CCC regular-season championship, serves as the No. 2 seed in the tournament and will play all of the games of their portion of the opening round at host school and top-seeded, Lindsey Wilson College (Ky.). Taylor University (Ind.) is the No. 3 seed in the tournament and will be Corban's opponent on Monday at 11 a.m. PST, while Madonna University (Mich.) is the No. 4 Seed.
Corban (40-11) is led by Taylor Eilders and Maddy Melton at the top of the lineup, as Eilders boasts a team-best 76 hits (new school record), while Melton is not far behind at 69 hits. Jessie Isham and Iris Rodriguez provide the power for the Warriors with 37 doubles and 18 home runs between the two to go along with 95 RBI. In addition, Sam Woodley has proven to be a big-game player throughout the season, hitting .382 at the plate with 55 hits. In the circle, Sabrina Boyd boasts a 1.49 ERA with a 21-4 overall record, while Allie Mendez owns a 13-4 overall record with a 2.52 ERA. Corban enters this week's contest ranked No. 14 in the latest NAIA Coaches' Top-25 poll and a 4-4 all-time record in the Opening Round.
Top-seeded Lindsey Wilson (39-11) enters the tournament after garnering an At-Large bid after being ranked No. 6 in the latest coaches' poll. The Blue Raiders advanced to the conference tournament championship, but narrowly lost. LWC won the conference regular-season championship after recording a 21-1 mark in conference play. Amber Foukes leads the way offensively for Lindsey Wilson with 47 RBI and 10 home runs to go with a .311 batting average. In the circle, it is Casey Bryan, the conference Pitcher of the Year who boasts a 22-6 record with a 1.79 ERA.
Taylor (38-16) also received an at-large bid to the National Tournament and was receiving votes in the most recent coaches' poll. The Trojans finished as runners-up in their conference with a 27-7 mark in conference action. As a team, Taylor boasts a .510 slugging percentage, a mark which is the eighth best in the NAIA. In addition, the Trojans have hit 47 home runs as a team, which rank most among the four teams in the Lindsey Wilson Bracket. Courtney Moriarty leads the way with 10 home runs individually for Taylor. In the circle, Hannah Robins leads the way with 17 wins and a 2.26 ERA.
Madonna (30-14) earned an automatic bid to the NAIA Opening Round thanks to finishing as the runner-up in its conference tournament. The Crusaders garnered a share of the conference regular-season championship (three-way tie), and four players earned First-Team All-Conference plaudits, while Erin Combs was named the conference Pitcher of the Year. With a 1.51 ERA and 21 wins to her name, Combs struck out 97 batters on the season. Morgan Kaiser leads the way at the dish for Madonna with a .416 batting average, while as a team, the Crusaders have hit 11 total home runs during the 2017 season.
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