Softball Clashes With USAO at NAIA World Series

COLUMBUS, GA. (May 27, 2024) - The NAIA No. 1-ranked Our Lady of the Lake University (OLLU) softball squad will play No. 6 seed the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (USAO) on Monday at the NAIA World Series. The Saints are the No. 1 seed and have won both games so far. The Drovers also haven't lost and are ranked sixth in the NAIA.

History

The Saints and Drovers have met four times and the series is knotted at 2-2. OLLU defeated USAO both times this season in February.

Tournament overview

The Saints are one of the six teams remaining in the tournament. OLLU and USAO are in the championship bracket, while the University of the Cumberlands, Oregon Tech, Jessup University and Madonna University make up the losers bracket. The winner of the Saints game will move on to the championship. The loser drops to the elimination bracket and will play on Tuesday. No. 4 seed Cumberlands takes on No. 5 seed Oregon Tech at 1 p.m. Eastern Time. No. 7 seed Jessup battles No. 8 seed Madonna at 4 p.m. The losing teams will be eliminated. 

Saints overview

The Saints have outscored opponents 6-0 in the tournament. Cassandra Valdez has pitched all 14 innings with 18 combined strikeouts. She is 28-1 in the circle with an ERA of 0.54. Kayla Dreese is 2-for-3 at the plate and has scored two runs. The Saints have hit 50 home runs this season and are batting .352. The squad has stolen four bases at the tournament and have drawn seven walks. 

Drovers overview

The Drovers are riding a 30-game winning streak. They scored five unanswered runs to defeat Jessup on Saturday. Sophie Williams grabbed the win in the circle after pitching a complete game with seven strikeouts. She allowed four earned runs and gave up seven hits. Williams, Malea McMurtrey and Macenzie Ruth had three hits apiece. The squad totaled 14 hits and Jessup committed two errors. 

Tournament information

Fans can watch live games, follow stats and more HERE.