NCAA Preview: Eastern Nazarene to Meet #23 Rowan in NCAA Softball Tournament Friday

NCAA HOMEPAGE
NCAA REGIONAL BRACKETS

QUINCY, Mass.- After capturing the program's first-ever New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) title, the Eastern Nazarene College softball team will clash with No. 23 Rowan in its first NCAA Tournament contest Friday at 12pm at MIT's Briggs Field.

Friday's tilt will mark the first-ever meeting between the two squads. Eastern Nazarene and Rowan are no strangers when it comes to NCAA Tournament play as the two teams squared off on the basketball court in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament "Sweet Sixteen" March 10, 2000.

ADMISSION FEES:
Adults: $10 per day
Students with ID: $7 per day

GAME SCHEDULE:
Friday, May 10
Game 1 – 12:00 pm – Rowan vs. Eastern Nazarene
Game 2 – 2:30 pm – MIT vs. Husson

Saturday, May 11
Game 3 – 11:00 am – Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2
Game 4 – 1:30 pm – Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2
Game 5 – 4:00 pm – Winner of Game 4 vs. Loser of Game 3

Sunday, May 12
Game 6 – 12:00 pm – Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 5
Game 7 – 2:30 pm – Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 6 (If Necessary)

JOURNEY TO THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Eastern Nazarene boasts a 28-13 overall record and finished the regular season with a 14-2 mark in the NECC. The Lions posted victories in three must-win games on the final day of the NECC Tournament to claim the program's first-ever conference crown and to punch its ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

Rowan enters the NCAA Tournament with a 30-12 record and is ranked No. 23 in the NFCA National Poll and No. 2 in the NCAA East Region. The Profs came up just short of reaching the NJAC Tournament championship series after falling to Kean.

"K" THX BYE:
Eastern Nazarene ranks second in the nation with a 6.09 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Junior Elisabeth Schaffer (Benton, Pa.) ranks third in NCAA Division III with 254 strikeouts on the year, sixth with an 8.76 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and seventh with 10.0 strikeouts-per-seven-innings.

EGG HUNTING:
The Lions rank third in Division III with 16 shutouts on the spring while Elisabeth Schaffer (Benton, Pa.) leads the nation with 14 shutouts pitched.

"ALL I DO IS WIN":
Elisabeth Schaffer (Benton, Pa.) owns a 24-5 record in the pitcher's circle this season. Her 24 wins rank second in the nation. Eastern Nazarene's 28 victories on the year match the program single-season record which was set in 2018.

GOING YARD:
Senior Lauren Clements (Garrison, Texas) ranks 19th in the country with an .851 slugging percentage while also ranking 20th with 11 home runs this season. She has blasted 33 career homers to own the program record. Five different players have launched a home run this season for the Lions.

ALL-CONFERENCE ACCOLADES:
Eastern Nazarene garnered four All-New England Collegiate Conference nods this spring. Lauren Clements (Garrison, Texas) headlined the honorees as she was named the NECC Player of the Year after claiming Commonwealth Coast Conference Player of the Year award last year. Elisabeth Schaffer (Benton, Pa.) was tabbed the NECC Pitcher of the Year after earning CCC Pitcher of the Year laurels a season ago. Fourth-year head coach Dani Bishop was voted the NECC Coach of the Year after collecting CCC Co-Coach of the Year honors last season. Clements and Schaffer were both selected to the All-NECC first team along with Kori Bow (Shaftsbury, Vt.). Rookie Kiley Ozaki (Ewa Beach, Hawaii) earned a spot on the All-NECC third team.

SCOUTING ROWAN:
The Profs posted a 30-12 record on the year and finished with a 14-4 mark in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC). Rowan will be making its ninth-straight and 27th all-time trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Profs are led by Carly Anderson with a .430 batting average, 61 base hits, 29 RBIs, and 40 runs scored this spring. Morgan Zane is batting .402 on the year and has recorded 53 hits, 34 RBIs, five home runs, and 25 runs scored.

Last spring, Rowan reached the NCAA Softball Championship Tournament in Oklahoma City, Okla. After dropping their first contest of the NCAA Tournament, the Profs rattled off four wins in the regional round to advance to the super regional where they posted a pair of 2-1 victories over Moravian to move onto the NCAA Softball Championship Tournament. In Oklahoma City, Rowan fell to Illinois Wesleyan 5-1 before suffering a 2-1 loss in extra innings to Case Western reserve.

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