Women's Softball | May 16, 2021

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The No.17 ranked Oregon Tech softball team is set to open up the NAIA National Tournament in Waleska, Georgia. Tech will play in the Reinhardt Bracket hosted by Reinhardt University at Ken White Field. The Owls will be the No. 1 seed and will open up play on Monday, May 17 against the No. 4 seed Cottey (Mo.) at 9:00 AM (Pacific) 

Tickets to the NAIA Softball Opening Round are for sale online. Tickets must be purchased in advice online and will not be sold at the game.

Purchase Tickets Here: https://reinhardteagles.com/general/2020-21/Online_Tickets 

• $10 Daily Pass
• $25 Tournament Pass  

Out of the Appalachian Athletic Conference, the host school Reinhardt University (41-13) is the No.3 seed and was ranked at No. 21 in the final NAIA Top 25 Coaches Poll; they are making their 6^th Opening Round appearance and are 8-6 overall in opening round games. Oregon Tech (42-8) is the No.1 seed in the bracket.
 
The rest of the bracket consists of No. 2 seeded Coastal Georgia (32-11) out of the Sun Conference. They won the Sun Conference Tournament to earn their berth into the opening round. The Mariners are making their NAIA postseason debut and enter the tournament with an 11-game win streak. The Owls first opponent is the No.4 seed, Cottey College (27-11) the Comets are from the Association of Independent Institutions. Both Coastal Georgia and Cottey ended the regular season in the receiving votes category in the Top 25 poll.
 
All of Oregon Tech's games will be broadcast live locally on 104.3 and 960 Sports with Michael Garrard providing the play by play. listen live link here
 
Each of the 10 opening round sites will feature four teams. Play will be from May 17-19, 2021 and will have a single day of rest between the first game and the championship. The winner of each will advance to the final site in Columbus, Ga. beginning on May 27 – June 2, 2021
 
About our first opponent: Cottey College earned their bid to the opening round as the second automatic qualifier from the Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.) as they lost the championship game of the Independent Tournament to Georgia Gwinnett settling for the 2^nd auto berth and first in school history.
 
Cottey is making its postseason debut after receiving votes in the latest NAIA Top 25 national poll. The Comets have a 27-11 record and have lost five of their last 7 games. Aryana Palencia leads the team with 44 RBI, a .408 batting average, and having scored 30 runs and 10 home runs already this season. Caitlyn Morgan has connected on 11 homers, while Lauren Johnson has legged out 14 doubles. Pitcher Lacey Cruz has a 13-5 record with 121 strikeouts in 93 innings.
 
A Look Back
(COVID-19 Cancelled the 2020 season) The last NAIA opening round and World Series was held in 2019. Oregon Tech won the Marion Bracket, downing Siena Heights (Mich) 4-1 in game 1. They then beat the #1 seed Indiana Wesleyan 4-1, and 6-0 to win the bracket and advance the Owls to their 5^th appearance at the College World Series. Oregon Tech lost to Georgia Gwinnett in a quarterfinals match-up to end their season. Southern Oregon went on to win the championship as the Owls settled for a 6^th place finish.
 
Oregon Tech, who won the 2011 NAIA National Championship, and finished fourth in the country in 2015, will be making their twelfth appearance in the NAIA National Tournament, including their 10th appearance in the last 11 years.  The Owls have a record of 16-7 in opening round games and have played in the opening round championship game every year they have gone. They won the opening round bracket in 2015 and 2019. They lost in the championship game(s) in 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2018.
 
THE CCC
The Cascade Collegiate Conference has three teams in the opening round: College of Idaho, Oregon Tech, and Southern Oregon. 
 
Tournament Schedule (All Times are Pacific) 

Monday, May 17
Game 1 – 9:00 AM: #1 Oregon Tech vs. #4 Cottey College
Game 2 – 11:30 AM: #2 Coastal Georgia vs #3 Reinhardt University  
Tuesday, May 18
Game 3 –9:00 AM: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner
Game 4 –11:30 AM: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser (Loser eliminated)       
Game 5 - 2:00 PM: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 winner (Loser eliminated) 
Wednesday, May 19
Game 6 – 9:00 AM: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5 – Championship Game
Game 7 – TBD: If necessary:30 min after Game 6