DECORAH, IOWA – After yet another historic season, the St. Catherine University softball team will once again compete in a NCAA Regional. For the second straight season, the Wildcats will head to Decorah, Iowa to open the NCAA Regional with a 1 p.m. game against the University of Chicago on Friday, Mary 12.
St. Kate's earned the No. 2 seed in the four-team tournament for the second straight season, which also features top-seeded Luther College, Chicago as the No. 3 seed, and the College of St. Scholastica. The Wildcats and Maroons will open the four-team, double elimination regional at 1 p.m. on Friday, and will fact the winner of top seeded Luther versus No. 4 St. Scholastica on Saturday, May 13.
St. Kate's is one of three conference tournament champions participating in the Decorah Regional, as the Norse and Saints each won their respective conference tournaments. The Wildcats won the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Playoff Championship for the first time in program history in just their second trip to the tournament after beating third-seeded Hamline University 6-2 on Sunday. Luther won the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) and St. Scholastica won the neighboring Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC).
Chicago was the only school to receive an at large bid in the Decorah Regional. The Maroon were the only team selected from Pool B, as they technically do not belong to a conference.
Tickets for the Regional will be $6 for adults and $3 for students. Children under the age of five will get in for free. More information can be found at the
NCAA Regional official website.
The Decorah Regional is one of 14 different regionals taking place from May 12-14. The winner will advance to the Super Regional to take on either Central College, Coe College, the University of St. Thomas or Washington University-St. Louis. Super regionals will take place May 19-20 at yet to be determined sites. The finals will be held May 25-30.
Here is the tournament schedule, and 5 things to know, before Friday afternoon:
1st – St. Kate's won its first ever MIAC Playoff Title on Sunday to earn the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. The Wildcats beat Hamline for the fourth time in six days in the Championship 6-2 behind a home run from
Jenna George (Ellsworth, Wis. / Ellsworth) and a slew of RBIs from
Sammie Galvez (Gilbert, Ariz. / Williams Field).
5 – St. Kate's had five players named to the All-Tournament team thanks to its perfect 3-0 weekend. Pitcher
Krista Flugstad (Bloomington, Minn. / Jefferson) was named Tournament MVP after allowing just four earned runs in 20 innings, with 15 strikeouts. Flugstad was joined by Galvez, George,
Kylie Macziewski (Bloomington, Minn. / Jefferson) and Amber Montero (Circle Pines, Minn. / Centennial).
2nd – This marks the second-consecutive season the Wildcats have qualified for the NCAA Tournament. St. Kate's earned an at-large bid in 2016 and advanced to the Championship Game in the Decorah Regional, where it met Luther. The Wildcats pushed the Norse to game seven but lost 3-1 in the final game.
4/25 – St. Kate's were regionally and nationally ranked in the most recent NCAA and National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) polls. Thanks to their run in the MIAC Tournament, the Wildcats were ranked fourth in the Midwest region in the NCAA's final poll, ahead of St. Thomas, Hamline, and the College of Saint Benedict. St. Kate's also cracked the NFCA top-25 poll for the first time since the beginning of the season, as it was tied with Coe at No. 25.
9 – To this point, the Wildcat have broke nine school records this season and tied one. George alone broke three, including the single season walks record her teammate
Anna Hinderaker (Rosemount, Minn. / Rosemount) broke earlier in the season. Flugstad broke the school records for career strikeouts, career wins, single season wins, and single season ERA during the year, while Macziewski broke the school record for career RBI in Saturday's playoff win over St. Thomas.
Tournament Schedule
| Friday, May 12 |
Time |
Teams |
Video/Stats |
| Game 1 |
1 p.m. |
No. 2 St. Kate's vs. No. 3 Chicago |
Link |
| Game 2 |
3:30 p.m. |
No. 1 Luther vs. No. 4 St. Scholastica |
Link |
| Saturday, May 13 |
|
|
|
| Game 3 |
11 a.m. |
Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 |
Link |
| Game 4 |
1:30 p.m. |
Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 |
Link |
| Game 5 |
4 p.m. |
Winner Game 4 vs. Loser Game 3 |
Link |
| Sunday, May 14 |
|
|
|
| Game 6 |
12 p.m. |
Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5 |
Link |
| Game 7 |
2:30 p.m. |
Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6 (if necessary) |
Link |
