The Nebraska Wesleyan University softball team is preparing for their first ever Great Plains Athletic Conference Postseason Tournament this week that takes place May 6-8 at the Smith Softball Complex in Hastings, Neb.
NWU finished second in the GPAC standings and received the No. 2 seed in the GPAC Tournament. They open play on Thursday afternoon (May 6) against the No. 7 seed, Dana College, in a game that begins at 4 p.m. The Prairie Wolves will then play again at 6 p.m., in either the winner's bracket or an elimination game depending on the outcome of the game. NWU will face either No. 3 seed Hastings College or No. 6 seed Doane College in their next game.
For NWU, this is the first season that they are competing in the NAIA Postseason so they are eligible for the GPAC Postseason Tournament. The winner of the GPAC Tournament receives an automatic bid to the NAIA National Tournament in Decatur, Alabama. Morningside College won the regular season GPAC title and received one automatic bid, if the Mustangs also win the GPAC Tournament, then the tournament runner-up receives the other bid.
It has been an amazing season for the NWU softball team this season. After being picked to finish seventh in the preseason poll, NWU went out and had their best ever season in GPAC play. The Prairie Wolves finished 17-7 in the GPAC to finish second in the standings. NWU is 26-12 overall, which is the second highest win total in NWU softball history.
This is the fifth straight 20-win season for the NWU softball team under head coach Lance Kingery after posting just one 20-win season before he arrived in 2002. Kingery, the all-time winningest coach in NWU history, now has 184 career wins in nine seasons at NWU.
Nebraska Wesleyan split with Dana on Apr. 28 in their regular season meeting. The Prairie Wolves played that day without their top pitcher and top hitter. NWU also split series with Hastings and Doane, who they could face in the second round.
NWU has been led by junior pitcher Alysia Wittmaack who has posted a 17-3 record on the season. She has struck out 130 batters and walked only 18. Last week she set the new school record for season victories (17) and career victories (38). In GPAC action, Wittmaack was 12-1 with a 0.97 ERA with her only loss coming to Morningside.
At the plate, leadoff batter Dani Bryant leads the team with 52 hits. She had already set the single season record for stolen bases with 39, and needs only five more to break the career record. Lauren Bodfield leads the team with a .402 batting average and has a team high 30 RBI. Marcia Kennedy is right behind her with 28 RBI and has hit five home runs.
