Cal State San Marcos softball is in Alabama today, ready to begin competition at the 2011 NAIA Softball National Championships.
The 32-team tournament will begin this Thursday, May 19th, at Gulf Shores Sportsplex in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Teams have been divided into eight pools, labeled A through H, for the “Pool Play” round. Each team will play one game against the other three members of its pool from May 19-21, with the winner of each pool advancing to the 8-team, double elimination “Bracket Round” beginning on May 23 and culminating with the National Championship Game on Tuesday, May 25th.
CSUSM enters as the #4-ranked team in the nation and the top seed in Pool D. The Cougars are joined in their pool by #16 Bethel (IN), Morningside (IA), and Asbury (KY). CSUSM will begin its run on Thursday, May 19th against Asbury at 3:30 PM CDT, then will face Morningside on Friday, May 20th at 9:00 AM, and finally take on Bethel on Saturday, May 21st at 4:30 PM.
Coach Dave Williams' Cougars have enjoyed the best season in the program's five-year history. The team has posted a 40-9 record that includes wins over #1-ranked Cal Baptist, defending NCAA Division II National Champion Hawaii Pacific, and defending NAIA National Champion Simon Fraser (BC). 10 of CSUSM's 17 players are freshmen, though the lineup is anchored by junior All-Conference first baseman Alyssa Dronenburg, and the team is led on the mound by senior Brenna Sandberg, a reigning All-American and two-time A.I.I. Conference Pitcher of the Year.
CSUSM finished a disappointing fourth at the Association of Independent Institutions (A.I.I.) tournament, which it hosted in San Marcos, but received an at-large bid to the NAIA National Championships. Live stats, recaps, and box scores for all NAIA National Championship games are available online: http://naia.cstv.com/sports/w-softbl/2011Championship.html.
