2021 Softball Notebook (NAIA Opening Round)

GAME COVERAGE: All games will be covered with Live Video on the Heart Conference Network. Fans can follow along with Live Stats on the Central Methodist DakStats Portal.

COMPLETE MEDIA GAME NOTES
 
OPENING ROUND SCHEDULE:
(All Times Listed as CT)
MONDAY, MAY 17
Game 1 @ 12 p.m. – #1 Central Methodist vs. #4 Ottawa University of Arizona
Game 2 @ 2:30 p.m. – #2 College of Idaho vs. #3 Freed-Hardeman

TUESDAY, MAY 18
Game 3 @ 11 a.m. – Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 (loser eliminated)
Game 4 @ 1:30 p.m. – Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2
Game 5 @ 4 p.m. – Winner of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 (loser eliminated)

WEDNESDAY, MAY 19
Game 6 @ 12 p.m. – Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5 (championship)
Game 7 @ 2:30 p.m. – Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 6 (if necessary)
 
SITE INFORMATION: The Fayette Bracket host is Central Methodist University. Fayette is located 29 miles northwest of Columbia, which is home to the University of Missouri. All games will be played at the Cox Softball Complex, which was completed in the spring of 2007 and is named after Trustee emeritus Glenn Cox, a 1951 graduate of CMU.
 
FAN POLICY: Each member of the official party - players, coaches, athletic trainers and school administrators - will have 2 tickets available for purchase. Additionally, a total of 30 general admission tickets will be made available to the public for each game. Tickets can be purchased on the CMU HomeTown Ticketing page. Masks are required inside CMU facilities. You can request a refund in case you are not able to make it to the game. The venue will only refund the price of the ticket, additional fees will not be refunded.

SETTING THE TOURNAMENT FIELD:
No. 1 Central Methodist (49-7, 34-4 Heart)      
No. 2 College of Idaho (38-16, 22-5 CCC)
No. 3 Freed-Hardeman (39-11, 25-7 Mid-South)       
No. 4 OUAZ (13-14, 4-2 GSAC)
 
SCOUTING THE TEAMS: In Fayette, host Central Methodist will serve as the No. 1 seed. The Eagles finished 34-4 in the Heart of America Athletic Conference to win the regular season title out of the south division. The No. 4 ranking for the program in the most recent NAIA Top-25 Coaches Poll is the highest in program history. The Eagles are second in the nation in runs scored per game with 418 on the campaign while also posting a 1.57 ERA that ranks eighth. Kelli Gorman (.400 BA, 21 HR, 80 RBI) leads the NAIA in home runs and runs driven in. The two headed tandem of Keighlan Cronin (25-2, 1.12 ERA, 232 K) and Madison Love (21-4, 1.73 ERA, 139 K) spends the majority of the time for Central Methodist in the circle. C of I will play No. 3 seed Freed-Hardeman (39-11) of Tennessee in their first game of the opening round. The Lions finished third in the Mid-South Conference regular season standings. FHU has been led by a strong pitching staff that is limiting opponents to a .167 batting average this season, the best mark in the NAIA. The 393 strikeouts for the team is the second most in the country. Brittany Adair (17-5, 1.33 ERA, 239 K) paces the way for the Lions on the mound. Kennedy Harris and Annalise Jarnagin have each hit seven homers. Rounding out the field in Fayette is No. 4 seed Ottawa University of Arizona (13-14), which won the GSAC Tournament. The Spirit played the Yotes earlier this season in Arizona, with C of I coming out on top 11-1 and 9-1. Andraya Rhinehart (.367 BA, 6 2B, 1 3B, 18 RBI, 9 SB) has been the top offensive producer in the lineup this year, while three pitchers led by Alexandra McCutcheon (7-5, 2.52 ERA, 65 K) have taken the circle in 2021. By winning the GSAC, OUAZ won the conference tournament for the first time in program history.
 
WHAT'S ON THE LINE: The winner of the Fayette Bracket will advance to the NAIA World Series in Columbus, Ga. on May 27-June 2. In total, 10 teams from opening round play across the country will move on to the final site. 
 
CASCADE CONFERENCE WELL-REPRESENTED: Three CCC teams advanced to the NAIA National Championship Opening round. In addition to C of I, Southern Oregon and Oregon Tech each earned No. 1 seeds. SOU will play host in Medford, while OIT travels to Waleska, Ga.

NAIA TOURNAMENT HISTORY: The Yotes are making the sixth trip to the NAIA National Championships in program history. The 2008, 2009 and 2014 teams advanced to the NAIA Softball World Series, where the 2014 team placed fifth overall. The 2013 club qualified for the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round site in Irvine, Calif. and the 2019 team qualified the Opening Round site in Hattiesburg, Miss. In all, C of I has a 31-23 all-time postseason record, including a 13-11 record in NAIA Championships play.
 
TRIO OVER 10 WINS: Of the 190 teams in the NAIA, just two have three pitchers with 10 or more wins, the No. 15 Yotes and No. 13 Morningside (Iowa). In total, 135 pitchers across the nation have reached double-digit win totals. C of I pitchers Katelyn Wilfert, Hannah McNerney and Annie Polster each have 10 or more wins this season in the circle.
 
CROSSING THE PLATE OFTEN: With 380 runs scored this season, the Yotes rank third in the NAIA behind only Southern Oregon (422) and Central Methodist (418).
 
PUTTING THE GAME IN MOTION: Led by 25 stolen bases from Haley Loffer and 23 from Micha Fortune, C of I has swiped 97 bags in 2021, ranking 11th in the nation.
 
THE .300 CLUB: Seven players who have started 25 or more games are hitting above .300 for the Yotes, including four over .350.
 
30-WIN SEASONS: C of I has won 30 or more games for the sixth time in program history. The 2021 squad is the eighth to win 25 or more games. The school record for wins in a season is 40, established by the 2019 squad that made it to the NAIA Opening Round.

FIVE YOTES HONORED BY CCC: In the postseason All-Conference awards released by the Cascade Conference, a total of four Yotes filled out the first and second-teams, tying a program record that has previously occurred in 2007, 2009, 2014 and 2019. Haley Loffer, Kaily Christensen and Katelyn Wilfert were each first-team picks, while Trystin Crofts was a second-team selection and Kylie Smith took home a Gold Glove and honorable mention All-Conference.
 
TOPPING NUMBER ONE: The win against Southern Oregon in the Cascade Conference Tournament to advance to the championship game against Oregon Tech was the first win in program history for the Yotes over the No. 1 ranked team in the nation.
 
CROFTS LEAVING HER MARK: Senior Trystin Crofts has become one of the most productive players in C of I history since she arrived on campus, ranking first on the all-time record list for the program with 137 runs scored for her career and first with 356 total bases. She is also first with 226 hits, second with 50 doubles, first with 13 triples, sixth with 18 home runs, first with 142 RBI and ranks fourth with 56 stolen bases. Crofts has played in 205 games, which is the most in program history.
 
DYNAMIC DOUBLE PLAY COMBO: Senior second baseman Kylie Smith is sixth in program history with 157 hits for her career, fourth with 107 runs scored, tied for fourth with 33 doubles, tied for sixth with five triples and is fifth with 94 RBI. She is third in program history with 32 sacrifice hits. Her double play partner, junior shortstop Haley Loffer, has now come across the plate a school record 61 times this year. Her 125 career runs is second behind only Trystin Crofts in program history. She has also stolen 70 bases in her career, ranking her second on the program record list. In addition to the offensive production, Loffer and Smith have been outstanding defensively. Loffer has turned 12 double plays, while Smith earned a Gold Glove from the Cascade Conference.
 
CHRISTENSEN CRUSHING IT: Freshman Kaily Christensen is hitting .401 this season. She is currently tied for fifth in the single-season record book with 59 hits, third with 16 doubles and is second with 50 RBI. Marissa Maddox set the record with 54 runs driven in during the 2019 campaign.
 
MENDIOLA FINISHING STRONG: Senior outfielder Aleah Mendiola has hit safely in five of her last six games, including multi-hit efforts in the CCC Tournament against Warner Pacific and Oregon Tech.
 
SUCCESS IN HIGH-SCORING GAMES: The Yotes have scored six or more runs in a game in 34 of 54 contests this season, including plating 10 or more on 18 occasions. In games where C of I scores six or more runs the team is 33-1.
 
A SMART GROUP: A total of 19 current or former C of I softball student-athletes were named to the Cascade Conference All-Academic Team including Payton Bates, Charmayne Bennett, Mallory Copeland, Reylene Cortes, Trystin Crofts, Micha Fortune, Lauren Garman, Nichole Giesy, Alyssa Goff, Lauren Gordon, Hattie Hruza, Haley Loffer, Hannah McNerney, Aleah Mendiola, Lacie Miller, Lexi Navarrete, Kylie Smith, Brielle Stephens and Sydney Zachry. The student-athletes honored were at least a sophomore in academic standing and have maintained a 3.20 cumulative grade point average at the College.
 
ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL HOME CAMPAIGN: The Yotes went 23-4 mark at Symms Field this season. C of I is 49-12 at home dating back to the start of the 2019 campaign. The 23 wins equals the 2019 team for the most in a season at home in school history. The Yotes have posted 15 straight winning seasons at home, going 219-103 over that span.
 
BY THE NUMBERS: The Yotes are 22-3 when scoring in the first inning this season and 37-1 when leading after the fourth inning. When C of I outhits the opposition, the squad is 36-2.
 
HELP SEND THE YOTES TO NATIONALS: Those interested in supporting sending C of I to nationals can do so on the GiveCampus page.
 
LOOKING AHEAD: The NAIA World Series is May 27-June 2 in Columbus, Ga.