NCAA Division III Softball Finals Website

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- The Illinois Wesleyan softball team will meet Trine University at 4 p.m. on Thursday, May 23, in the first round of the NCAA Division III Softball Championships at Suddenlink Field on the campus of the University of Texas in Tyler, Texas.

The Titans, who are the No. 2 seed among the final eight teams, are 38-8 this season while the No. 7 seeded Thunder comes to the final round with a 35-6 mark.
IWU and Trine last met in softball on March 14, 2017, in Kissimmee, Fla., in a game won by the Thunder by a 12-10 score. In that game, IWU's Jillian Runyon and Julie Josten each had four hits and Josten had six runs batted in.

Trine softball is making its 12th straight NCAA tournament appearance having received an at-large bid to the 2019 NCAA Division III Softball Championship. The Thunder won their ninth Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) regular season title with a 14-2 conference mark but did not win the MIAA postseason tournament.
In national Division III statistics, Trine entered Super Regional play ranked No. 5 in home runs, No. 7 in slugging percentage and No. 9 in home runs per game.
With a .332 team batting average with 44 home runs, Trine is led by the .395 mark of third baseman Lainey McCue, who has eight doubles, 10 home runs and 38 runs batted in. Junior shortstop Makenna Hartline has 11 home runs with 15 doubles and 34 runs batted in and sophomore second baseman Mercede Daugherty has a team-high 16 doubles with 34 RBI and a .326 average.
In the circle, senior lefthander Kate Saupe has a 16-2 record with a 1.52 earned run average and five shutouts and junior righthander Hannah Kampmann 15-1 three shutouts and a 1.82 ERA.

Trine Softball Page   |   Schedule, Results   |   Statistics   |   Roster

FIRST DAY SCHEDULE (THURSDAY, MAY 23)
Game One - 11 a.m. - No. 1 seed St. Thomas (Minn.) vs. No. 8 Eastern Connecticut State
Game Two - 1:30 p.m. - No. 5 Williams vs. winner of Linfield/Texas Lutheran game being played Sunday
Game Three - 4 p.m. - IWU vs. Trine
Game Four - 6:30 p.m. - No. 3 Emory vs. No. 6 Randolph-Macon

SECOND DAY SCHEDULE (FRIDAY, MAY 24)
Game Five - 11 a.m. - Loser Game One vs. Loser Game Two
Game Six - 1:30 p.m. - Loser Game Three vs. Loser Game Four
Game Seven - 4 p.m. - Winner Game Three vs. Winner Game Four
Game Eight - 6:30 p.m. - Winner Game One vs. Winner Game Two

Play will continue in the double elimination tournament through Tuesday, May 28. Every game of the NCAA Division III Softball Championship in Tyler, Texas, will be broadcast for free on NCAA.com. The broadcasts can also be accessed via the NCAA Sports app and on smart TVs with a free account via the Bleacher Report Live app.