Softball hoping history does not repeat at SCIAC Tourney

ORANGE, Calif. – If the Chapman University softball team is experiencing a little déjà vu this week, there's good reason for that. The Panthers will begin the SCIAC Tournament as one of four teams – the No. 3 seed to be exact – with their eyes on an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III playoffs, same as last year.

But the similarities to last year's team don't end there. Chapman earned the No. 3 seed thanks to a 26-14 overall record and 17-11 SCIAC mark – both identical to its 2013 records. And the Panthers will face the same No. 2 seed Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Friday in the tournament opener at 11:30 a.m. at the same location – "Field of Dreams", hosted by the same No. 1 seed University of Redlands.

That's where the Panthers hope the similarities end. Chapman had a forgettable visit to last year's SCIAC Tournament, going two-and-out to cap a season-ending eight-game losing streak.

This year's softball team has had quite a different path to the SCIAC Tournament, rallying from a 4-10 start to win nine in a row and finish the year winning 22 of 28, including a doubleheader sweep over the aforementioned top seeded Bulldogs in April.

Chapman got here with pitching, ranking second in the SCIAC in earned run average (2.18) and leading the league in strikeouts (276) by nearly double the next closest team (Whittier, 145). Sophomore RHP Natalie Both (10-10, 1.82 ERA) is the conference leader with 168 strikeouts in just 142 innings. Meanwhile, junior RHP Cassie Oregel (14-6, 2.16 ERA) has 101 strikeouts in 116.2 innings.

The Panthers will have to get past a tough Claremont team that shut them out 3-0 in the first round of the 2013 SCIAC Tournament on their way to winning the whole thing. The Athenas are the only team in the conference with a better ERA (1.88) than Chapman and are second in team batting (.323).

The winner will turn around and play the winner of Friday's first game between Redlands and No. 4 seed Whittier at 1:30 p.m. while the losers will play at 4 p.m. in an elimination game. The tournament will conclude on Saturday with the winner earning the SCIAC's automatic bid into the NCAA playoffs.

by Doug Aiken
Sports Information Director

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2014 SCIAC Softball Tournament
Game Schedule (at Redlands)

Friday, May 2
Game 1: No. 1 Redlands vs. No. 4 Whittier; 9 a.m.
Game 2: No. 2 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps vs. No. 3 Chapman; 11:30 a.m.
Game 3: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2; 1:30 p.m.
Game 4: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2; 4 p.m. (elimination game)

Saturday, May 3
Game 5: Loser of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4; 11 a.m. (elimination game)
Game 6: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 5; 1:30 p.m.
Game 7: Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 6; 4 p.m. (if necessary)