WINTER HAVEN, Fla. - The Lady Eagles have landed in central Florida for their first Opening Round bid since 2018 and their 14th berth in the NAIA Softball National Championship in program history under the steady leadership of head coach Hal Wynn.
Season Results & Opening Round History
The Lady Eagles' regular season resume received early boosts with a crucial split with Southeastern, currently the No. 3 team in the NAIA and the host of their Opening Round, and three more ranked wins in the NFCA NAIA Leadoff Classic against Georgia Gwinnett (via a walkoff two-RBI double by senior second baseman and SSAC Co-Player of the Year Chloe Davidson), Reinhardt and Cumberlands (Ky.). Faulkner ended the regular season on an 11-game winning streak as well as wins in 15 of 16 games, featuring a no-hitter by freshman Addison Moseley at Point and walkoff wins against Brewton-Parker and Abraham Baldwin to wrap up the regular season.
The Lady Eagles then rode two complete games from Reece Patterson to fourth place in the SSAC Championship, including a nine-inning walkoff win to stave off elimination against Tennessee Southern with a walkoff bunt single by Anna Catherine Segrest to score Bailea Boone. Faulkner fell in run-rule results to eventual runner-up Mobile and Blue Mountain Christian to suffer elimination in Decatur. Those three opponents combine with Faulkner and conference champion William Carey as the five SSAC squads to earn Opening Round berths.
With a 35-14 overall record and a 17-7 mark in SSAC play good for a runner-up finish in the standings, Faulkner achieved its best season records since the 2018 run, in which it had its winningest season in program history with a 48-16 mark, 19-7 SSAC mark and an Opening Round title to clinch a spot in the World Series.
The 2018 team featured a star-studded lineup of nine All-SSAC Lady Eagles, just two shy of the seven on the 2026 team. The roster boasted First Teamers Shelby Brown, Caitlin Perry, Emma Cornell, Hannahlee Harris, Maggie Tipton and Kendall Bennett, Second Teamers Shelbie Burbage (eventually the program's all-time stolen base leader), Abbigail Barron and Dakota Berry, as well as eventual program mainstays Tara Ammons, Nicole Morrison, Alicia Richardson and Julianne Wilkes.
After dropping its second game of the Opening Round to top seed Campbellsville and weather forced the semifinals, elimination finals and the championship round into one day, Faulkner pulled off three wins, improbably all won by Perry in the circle. Perry went the distance in a nine-inning elimination game against Madonna and in forcing the if-necessary game against Campbellsville in the championship finals. In the winner-take-all game against the host Tigers, the Lady Eagles were held to four hits, the third of which was the winning play in a 2-1 decision with a two-RBI triple from Tipton. Perry earned the win with just two hits and one run allowed, and Cornell, now Head Athletic Trainer at Faulkner, earned a three-inning save with just one hit and a strikeout to advance to the first World Series berth in program history.
Previewing the Field
3-seed and No. 25 Faulkner takes on the 2-seed and No. 14 Valor from Springfield, Mo., for the first time in program history. Evangel enters with a 43-9 overall record and a 21-5 mark in Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference play. Evangel won its third consecutive KCAC Conference Tournament title in as many seasons in the conference, doing so in dominant fashion, outscoring its opponents 23-0 in the tournament. The run is the latter four games in an outstanding streak of eight straight shutouts, all against conference opponents, with six of them, including the title game, in run-rule fashion. The Valor are led by tenth-year head coach Jay Halbrook, who has produced 33 all-conference and seven NFCA All-Region players.
With a win, the Lady Eagles will advance to play the Fire, who are 55-7 and 22-2 in Sun Conference play, for the third time this season, as Southeastern dispatched Dillard in a 1-0 defensive showdown in the first game. The two split the February neutral site series in Hattiesburg for Faulkner's first win over the Fire in five tries. Led by seventh-year head coach Kayla Watkins, the third coach in the program's 14-season history, the Fire fell in the Sun Conference Championship final to #9 Keiser but won the regular season title with a 44-7 overall record and 22-2 mark in Sun play. SEU registered its third straight 40-win season and fourth in five seasons, as well as its second-most conference wins in program history and a 13-0 record in true road games.
A loss will result in a first-time matchup with the Dillard Bleu Devils from New Orleans. This is their first nationals berth after winning the HBCUAC Conference Tournament, as they went 27-14 overall and 19-2 in HBCUAC play.
Statistical Superlatives
Faulkner is batting .344 for the 19th-best mark in the NAIA and second-best in this Opening Round field behind Dillard's .352. It is led by SSAC leader Davidson with a .453 mark, fourth in the Opening Round and third with 68 hits. Kenna Mayfield of Evangel leads the field with 85 hits and is tied for the lead with Raylei McKinney of Southeastern with a .486 batting average, who leads the field with 60 RBI and 13 home runs. Addyson Jarman is second in the field with 10 homers and third with 47 RBI; Sarah Williams is fourth with 46 RBI.
The Lady Eagles' high-powered offensive lineup will be tested, as Evangel is eighth in the NAIA with a 1.78 ERA. The Fire lead the nation in ERA with a 1.16. Three of the top four pitchers in ERA and WHIP in this Opening Round are from the Fire: Eden Playa, Maria Zelenka and Emma Vickers. Playa is fourth in the NAIA with a 0.92 ERA, two below SSAC Pitcher of the Year Jayden Sawyer of William Carey. Maddy Meierer of Evangel is fifth in the nation and second in the Opening Round with a 0.98 ERA. Patterson, the Game One starter, is fifth in the field with a 1.42 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP.
Coverage
All games of the NAIA Softball National Championship are streamed free of charge on the Urban Edge Network. See the Championship Central page for links to live stream and live stats, as well as box scores, recaps, photos and more.
