IRVINE, Calif.— For the third time in program history, the Western Oregon softball team has earned a berth in the NCAA DII Softball Championships. Being awarded the No. 5 seed with an at-large berth in the eight-team West Regional Championships, the Wolves are one of three Great Northwest Athletic Conference schools (a conference first for participants) to make the tournament. They will take on No. 4 San Francisco State in the West Region 1 double-elimination bracket on Thursday, May 9 to open play.

Thursday, May 9	Time	Matchup	Quick Links
Game 1 - First Round	11 a.m. PT	No. 5 Western Oregon vs. No. 4 San Francisco State	Live Stats | Live Video
Game 2 - First Round	1:30 p.m. PT	No. 8 Concordia (Ore.) at No. 1 Concordia University Irvine	Live Stats | Live Video
Friday, May 10	Time	Matchup	Quick Links
Game 3 - Second Round	10 a.m. PT	Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2	Live Stats | Live Video
Game 4 - Elimination Game	12:30 p.m. PT	Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2	Live Stats | Live Video
Game 5 - Elimination Game	3 p.m. PT	Winner of Game 4  vs. Loser of Game 3	Live Stats | Live Video
Saturday, May 11	Time	Matchup	Quick Links
Game 6 - Championship Game	11 a.m. PT	Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 5	Live Stats | Live Video
Game 7 - (if necessary*)	1:30 p.m. PT	Rematch of Game 6 (but only if undefeated team loses)	Live Stats | Live Video

 
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
 
Western Oregon previously made appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 2008 and 2014, earning automatic berths in both years after winning the GNAC regular season title in 2008 and conference tournament in 2014. 2019 represents the first time in program history they have made the dance with an at-large berth. They own a 4-4 overall regional record, including two meetings with eventual national champion Humboldt State in 2008.

2008 (Irvine, Calif.)
May 7 - Western Oregon 9, Cal State Monterey Bay 1
May 8 - Western Oregon 4, Stanislaus State 0
May 9 - Western Oregon 7, Cal State Dominguez Hills 0
May 10 - Humboldt State 1, Western Oregon 0 
May 11 - Humboldt State 9, Western Oregon 0

2014 (Seaside, Calif.)
May 8 - Cal State Monterey Bay 3, Western Oregon 1
May 9 - Western Oregon 4, Sonoma State 3
May 9 - Cal Baptist 10, Western Oregon 0 (5 inn.)
 

West Region Participants
Rank	School	Record
1.	Concordia (Calif.)	44-6
2.	UC San Diego	31-14
3.	Chico State	29-15
4.	San Francisco State	38-18
5.	Western Oregon	31-16
6.	Sonoma State	35-18
7.	Central Washington	33-18
8.	Concordia (Ore.)	31-21

  WEST REGION 1 PARTICIPANTS BREAKDOWN

No. 1 seed - Concordia University Irvine Eagles
The two-time PacWest Conference champions finished the regular season on a 15-game winning streak and became just the second PacWest softball team to win at least 30 conference games in a single season.  The Eagles went a combined 3-0 against the other teams in their bracket, with a sweep of the Cavaliers and a 7-1 victory over San Francisco State in the Turlock Tournament of Champions.  2018 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Freshman of the Year Callie Nunes has tossed four no-hitters in her sophomore campaign, including one against Concordia (Ore.) this past February.  Nunes earned her most recent no-no in a 4-0 win over Academy of Art that delivered CUI head coach Crystal Rosenthal career win No. 500 as leader of the Eagles.  Three-time PacWest Freshman of the Week Sydney Sprinkle led CUI with a .399 batting average and a team-high nine homers in the regular season. Preseason All-PacWest third baseman Amanda Gjertsen leads the Green and Gold with 44 RBI while shortstop Sarah Kretschmar has started every game this season and provides solid defense on the left side of the diamond.  The Eagles also earned the No. 1 ranking in the NFCA DII poll for the first time in school history in March during their season-high 16-game winning streak.

No. 4 seed - San Francisco State Gators
The San Francisco State Gators finished in third place in the competitive California Collegiate Athletic Association, while winning two-thirds of their conference games (26-13), and finishing with an overall record of 38-18.  The Gators' greatest strength is their speed.  They stole 125 bases during the regular season and had a team batting average of .325.  Karla Soto led the Gators' pitching staff with 17 wins, while Emily Mitchell finished with 16.  SFSU has also won 10 of its last 12 games.

No. 5 seed - Western Oregon Wolves
Western Oregon went 31-16 in the regular season, while winning 19 of its 28 games in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, good for third in the conference standings.  The Wolves have one of the top offenses in Division II softball, with four different batters hitting over .360 on the season.  Ayanna Arceneaux has started every game for the Wolves and has a .381 batting average, .690 slugging percentage, and .527 on base percentage.  Pitcher Haley Fabian led the Wolves with 13 wins on the season. 

No. 8 seed - Concordia (Ore.) Cavaliers
Concordia (Ore.) finished the regular season with a 31-22 record and have advanced to the DII Regional Tournament for the first time in school history.  The Cavaliers had a stellar 18-10 record in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and took third in the final standings.  The Cavaliers have a pair of strong starting pitchers, with Mckenzie Smith leading the team in wins (16) and Sally Bowles leading in ERA (2.72).  Four Cavaliers finished the regular season with a batting average over .300, led by Marissa Stockton's .352 average.  Hannah Self led the team in home runs (13) and RBI (44).  Concordia (Ore.) has won five of their last six games entering Thursday's regional action.
 

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ALL-GNAC HONOREES: Seven Western Oregon players were named to the 2019 All-GNAC team with two Wolves making the first team, two on the second team and three honorable mentions. Ryanne Whitaker and Ayanna Arceneaux earned first team nods, Cheyanne Rimer and Tyler Creach second team and Kennedy Coy, Haley Fabian and Maddie Mayer making the honorable mentions. 

WOU IN DII STATS: The Wolves are ranked No. 22 in NCAA DII with a .330 batting average... WOU is No. 14 overall with 0.38 triples per game... Ayanna Arceneaux is ranked No. 7 nationally with a .481 batting average and No. 23 in NCAA DII with a .527 on-base percentage.

WOU IN GNAC STATS: The Wolves hold the GNAC's No. 2 batting average at .330 for the season... The Wolves' pitching staff tops the league with a 2.88 ERA... Three Wolves are in the GNAC's top 10 for batting average with Ayanna Arceneaux (1st, .481), Ryanne Whitaker (8th, .378), and Kennedy Coy (10th, .367) among the conference leaders... Maddie Mayer is 2nd with a 2.46 ERA and Haley Fabian 5th at 2.70 on the conference leaderboard, both finishing the regular season with a 2.55 mark.

10+ HIT STREAKS: Five Wolves have registered 10-game hitting streaks this season... Kennedy Coy held the longest streak of the season at 15 games which began April 6 and ended May 2 with an 0-for-2 outing in the first game of the GNAC Tournament… Ayanna Arceneaux provided the next longest streak at 14 games while Jenna Kelly hit safely in 13 straight contests... Ryanne Whitaker and Cheyanne Rimer each posted 11-game streaks earlier this season... Arceneaux reached base in a team-best 22 consecutive games from March 23 to April 19... Whitaker enters the postseason having reached base in 19 straight contests. Entering the West Regionals, Rimer's current eight-game hit streak and nine-game reaching safely streak is the longest active on the team.

FABIAN GNAC PITCHER OF THE WEEK: Senior Haley Fabian earned GNAC Pitcher of the Week honors in the final week of the regular season after tossing two complete game shutouts. In total over a two-game span between wins April 27-28 against Saint Martin's and Central Washington, respectively, Fabian spun 14.0 innings, allowing four runs on 14 hits, walking one and striking out nine. She struck out a season-high seven batters in the game against the Saints. She finishes the regular season tied for the second-best ERA in the GNAC with a 2.55 mark.

TRIPLES LEADERS: Four WOU players are tied for the conference lead in triples with four: Tyler Creach, Ryanne Whitaker, Kennedy Coy and Ayanna Arceneaux.

MIGHTY MAYER: In a stretch that included three straight shutouts, freshman pitcher Maddie Mayer won six consecutive starts from the circle from March 25 until April 19... Mayer held her opponents scoreless for 27 straight innings before Concordia broke the string with a single run in the top of the 2nd on April 14... For her efforts, Mayer was named the GNAC Pitcher of the Week on April 15 after going 3-0 in the week with a 1.84 ERA.

ARCENEAUX AMONG ALL-TIMERS: Now qualified for several of the school's all-time career leaders after crossing more than 200 at bats during her career, sophomore Ayanna Arceneaux is now listed in the school's all-time rankings in a trio of offensive categories... For her career, Arceneaux holds the school's No. 1 all-time batting average (.415) and on-base percentage (.456)... In addition, her current career slugging percentage (.573) is the No. 4 mark in school history... Her 2019 averages in both batting average and on-base percentage currently represent the school's single-season records. 

SARGENT HITS 400: With a 7-5 win in the opener over Concordia on April 14, WOU head coach Lonny Sargent notched his 400th career win as a collegiate skipper... In his 7th season in Monmouth, Sargent holds a 197-164 record with the Wolves... Before arriving at Western Oregon, Sargent tallied 175 wins while at Mt. Hood CC and 31 victories at Utah State... Sargent is ranked No. 2 in school history in career wins behind Pam Knox... Knox tallied 226 wins from 2003-12 and is also the GNAC all-time record holder.

STEADY STARTERS: Ayanna Arceneaux (LF) and Cheyanne Rimer (3B) are the lone Wolves to start all 47 games at the same position this season...Ryanne Whitaker has also logged 47 starts with 45 starts at second base, one at shortstop and one as the designated hitter... Sydney Bowers (SS) and Tyler Creach (CF) have started the same position in 46 of the team's 47 games.

WOU WINS RECORD: Pitching a 5-inning complete game on March 13 against Northwest Christian, WOU senior Haley Fabian collected her 33rd career win in the red and white to set the all-time school record (NCAA DII era)… Christina Cooke held the previous record with 32 wins from 2005-2008… Fabian now has a 39-24 overall record for WOU and also holds the school's save record at five.

FABIAN RANKS: In addition to the WOU wins records, Haley Fabian is ranked in WOU's all-time top 5 in several other pitching totals, including: complete games (No. 2, 44), appearances (No. 3, 87), starts (No. 3, 65), innings (No. 3, 424.2) and strikeouts (No. 3, 294).

RIMER POWER: Senior Cheyanne Rimer is represented in several of WOU's all-time career top-10 offensive categories… Rimer holds the school's No. 7 slugging percentage (.514), No. 7 mark for home runs (17) and No. 9 mark in career doubles (28).

WHITAKER WHEELS: With two stolen bases against San Francisco State on March 30, senior Ryanne Whitaker set WOU's all-time career record… Whitaker surpassed previous co-record holders Val King (48, 2001-03) and Tyler Sutherland (48, 2007-10) and now has 57 total stolen bases in her career… Whitaker's .851 success rate (57-of-67) on the base paths is good for No. 3 all-time… Marissa Card holds the school record at .939 (46-of-49) set from 2002-04... Whitaker's 20 stolen bases this season is a career high for a single season and is tied for the third-highest total in school history... Kelsie Gardner holds the single-season school record with 24 thefts in 2017. 

TIDWELL TOSSES SHUTOUT: Freshman Reilly Tidwell hurled WOU's first shutout of the season with a 2-hitter against Northwest Christian on March 13… Tidwell struck out four and walked three in the 8-0 win.  

WOU SOFTBALL FIELD UPGRADES: The WOU Softball Field received dramatic upgrades in the summer of 2018… In addition to new netting and a completely new backstop the entire playing surface received treatment… A Bernhardt Golf Drainage system was installed in the outfield to improve playability in the natural grass area while a Hellas Matrix® Turf was installed in the infield.

GNAC OPENER: The Wolves recorded a 3-1 record in the opening week of GNAC play on March 9-10...The Wolves posted a sweep against Simon Fraser on March 9 with 6-3 and 9-3 scores... WOU went on to win the opening game against Western Washington on the following day before falling 10-2 in the final game of the weekend.

RECORD RBI DAY FOR CREACH: WOU centerfielder Tyler Creach went 3-for-4 at the plate and drove in a career-best seven RBI in the second game against Simon Fraser on March 9... Creach belted a solo homer to lead off the 1st for the Wolves and returned with a grand slam in the 2nd inning... Batting again with the bases loaded in the 3rd inning, Creach sliced a single to plate two more runners... One RBI away from tying the WOU and GNAC record, the Wolves loaded the bases for Creach yet again in the 4th inning but SFU forced an infield pop-up to retire Creach for the only time in the game.

BACK-TO-BACK(S): The Wolves connected on back-to-back home runs in both games against Western Washington on March 10... In the first game against the Vikings, Cheyanne Rimer and Jenna Kelly opened the 2nd inning with solo shots while Sydney Bowersand Rimer went yard to begin the 4th inning of the nightcap.

PITCHING OPTIONS: Five different WOU pitchers recorded a win during the team's first 10 wins of the season... Haley Fabian leads the club with 86 innings of work and has a 10-3 record this season... Maddie Mayer is next up with 73 2/3 innings from the circle and has a 9-2 mark. 

TAKING THREE: Five different players have recorded a triple so far this season for WOU while the Wolves did not allow a triple until the team's 18th game of the season... WOU has an 15-4 edge over its opponents in three-baggers.... Ayanna Arceneaux and Ryanne Whitaker share the GNAC lead with four triples this season and are three shy of Lydia Foster's school record of seven set in 2005... Kennedy Coy and Tyler Creah have three triples each for the Wolves this season.

FLORIDA RECAP: Playing in Florida for the first time since 2001, WOU went 4-3 while competing at the PFX Athletics Tournament March 1-4… WOU played teams from four different NCAA Division II conferences, including four games against members of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

WOLVES BREAK INTO TOP 25: Picking up 35 points, Western Oregon broke into the NFCA Coaches' Poll with a No. 24 ranking on March 20… Ranked No. 9 in NCAA DII, UC San Diego (26-7) is the top team from the West Region... In all, the West Region landed three teams in the top 25 with Concordia Irvine (No. 15) and Sonoma State (No. 2) also receiving national recognition.

WOLVES PERFECT IN VEGAS: Overcoming deficits in all three games, WOU went 3-0 in games at the Las Vegas Desert Stinger on Feb. 1-3. The Wolves opened play with an 8-3 win over Colorado Christian and followed the performance up with a 6-5 win in a 9-inning battle against Cal State Monterey Bay. WOU closed out the weekend with a 7-2 win over No. 7-ranked Chico State... Senior Ryanne Whitaker led the team with two triples, both of which took place on opening day of the Desert Stinger. .

TOP-10 UPSET: Down 2-0 heading to the 6th, WOU scored seven runs over the final two stanzas to stun No. 7-ranked Chico State in the final game of the Desert Stinger. The Wolves out-hit Chico State 8-4 with Maddie Mayer tossing four innings of no-hit ball to close out the game and collect the win.

MAYER NAMED GNAC PITCHER OF THE WEEK: Picking up two wins in the opening week, freshman pitcher Maddie Mayer was named the GNAC Pitcher of the Week on Feb. 4. In her collegiate debut, Mayer tossed a 9-inning complete game to help the Wolves to a 6-5 win over Cal State Monterey Bay. Mayer returned by holding No. 7-ranked Chico State hitless for four innings in a 7-2 WOU win.

WHITAKER ON WATCH LIST: An All-West Region selection last season, senior infielder Ryanne Whitaker was among 50 players tabbed to the NFCA DII National Player of the Year Watch List. Whitaker was the lone player on the list from the GNAC,

PRESEASON GNAC COACHES' POLL: Western Oregon was picked to finish in third place out of eight teams according to the 2019 GNAC Preseason Poll. WOU notched 41 points to trail preseason favorite Northwest Nazarene (61 points) and runner-up Central Washington (59 points). NNU picked up five first-place votes with CWU nabbing the final three first-place picks.

2019 RETURNERS: The Wolves return eight position starters and three pitchers from their 2018 squad. Senior infielder Ryanne Whitaker (Huffman) earned First Team All-GNAC and NFCA All-West Region honors after she finished with a .397 batting average with 37 runs, 26 RBI, and a .517 slugging percentage. Sophomore outfielder Tyler Creach led WOU as a freshman with a .409 batting average and finished with 72 hits to earn First Team All-GNAC and Second Team NFCA All-West Region awards. The lineup also includes returners in senior infielder Cheyanne Rimer, sophomore infielder Sydney Bowers, sophomore outfielder Ayanna Arceneaux and senior pitcher Haley Fabian.

2018 RECAP: Western Oregon went 28-25 overall last season with a 15-13 mark in GNAC play. The Wolves notched a pair of walk-off wins on the final day of the regular season to clinch the No. 4 seed in the GNAC Tournament. The Wolves fell 3-0 to NNU in the opening game of the GNAC Tournament and returned with a 4-2 win to eliminate Central Washington. WOU's season ended with a 6-3 defeat against Simon Fraser.