Marietta College announces Softball set to host Ncaa Regional Tournament

From March 15, 2023 post.

MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College softball team put together a great regular season but was knocked out of the Ohio Athletic Conference tournament on day one, leaving their aspirations of competing for a NCAA National title in question.   On Monday, they not only received the news that were included in the field of 62 teams competing, but they will be host of one of the regional tournaments in the 2023 NCAA Division III softball Championship.
The full tournament field was announced via a selection show Monday (May 15) afternoon by the NCAA.  The Pioneers will welcome the teams from Pfeiffer University, Rowan University, and Penn State Berks.
Marietta (24-15) is the No. 3 seed and will face No.2 seed Pfeiffer University in the opening round on Thursday (May 18) at 2 p.m. The Falcons are 32-11 on the season and were awarded an automatic bid into the tournament by winning the USA South Athletic Association last weekend.
Rowan (36-6) was defeated by Ramapo in the New Jersey Athletic Conference last weekend but gained an at-large bid.  The top-seeded Profs will battle No. 4 seed Penn State Berks at 4:30 p.m. in game two on Thursday.  The Nittany Lions (27-9) earned an automatic bid into the tournament after defeating Penn State Harrisburg, 9-1, in the final game of the United East Tournament.
The Pioneers will rely on the power hitting and run production of their middle of the lineup.  Rachel Kazmirski (Colliers, W.Va./Brooke) led or was near the top in many OAC statistical categories, with 12 home runs, 52 RBIs, and a 459 batting average.  Jess Brown (Brookville, Ohio/Brookville) and Jillian Middleton (Marietta, Ohio/Marietta) are capable of hitting a long ball or driving in many runs.  Table setters Taylor Watts (Galloway, Ohio/West Jefferson) and Camryn Campbell (Mansfield, Ohio/Lexington) are good at getting on base and setting up the offense.
In game one, the Pioneers will be going up against a Pfeiffer team that has outscored their opponents 231-97.  Sophomore Kenzi Lyall is the team leader in home runs (10) and batting average (.408).  Sophomore catcher Emma Chopko led her team with 11 doubles and 38 RBIs.
Pfeiffer will probably start junior Kali Morton in game one.  Morton has a 19-3 record in 127 innings pitched.  She has a 0.99 ERA with 158 strikeouts on the season.
Depending how the bracket plays out, Marietta could face Rowan in a later round.  The Profs are led by sophomore Liz McCaffrey, who leads the team with a .367 batting average and is a perfect 17-for-17 in base stealing attempts.  Junior Cat Thomas provides the power as she leads her teams with eight home runs and 40 runs batted in.
Rowan have some strong pitching, led by Rylee Lutz.  The sophomore has a 21-4 record and 1.38 ERA with 158 strikeouts.
Penn State Berks comes into the tournament with a .319 team batting average.  Junior Arizona Shreck lead the team with 48 hits and a .475 batting average.  Senior outfielder Susan Duncan is tied for the team lead in RBIs with 38 and also leads the team with 8 home runs.
Briana Smith is the Nittany Lions top starter with a 15-6 record.  She has an ERA of 1.80 and has 101 strikeouts on the season.
Complete tournament information can be found on the regional website by clicking HERE. 

Original post can be found here.