DENVER – After punching their ticket with a dominant 9-3 win over No. 1 seed UT Tyler, No. 5 seed Rogers State softball (56-10) will open the NCAA Division II Softball Championship Series against No. 8 seed Cal State Dominguez Hills (45-22) on Monday. The series is setup in a best-of-three format.
The Hillcats earned a spot in the series after taking down No. 1 seed UT Tyler in a 9-3 semifinal game on Sunday. Offensively, RSU was led by Lana Gass who logged four RBI including a three-run double. Abbey Rogers teed off on her third home run of the tournament and is only one away from tying the tournament record. Kimberli Presnell was also a vital piece as she is now 8-for-11 at the plate in the tournament. Andrea Morales was dominant as usual with her third win of the tournament and sat down nine-straight Patriots after a lengthy weather delay between the fourth and fifth innings.
Cal State Dominguez Hills earned their way into the championship series by fighting their way out of the loser's bracket and were forced to defeat No. 7 seed North Georgia twice on Sunday. In the first game, they overcame a five-run inning from the Nighthawks as well as making five errors to force the if necessary game in a 8-6 win. In the second game of the day, CSUDH sent UNG back to the Peach State with a 7-5 win.
The Hillcats and Toros faced off previously in the tournament as RSU sent Dominguez Hills to the loser's bracket in a 10-2 win on Friday. Additionally, this is both squads' first ever appearance in the championship series.
Game one will start at 1 p.m. CT on Monday, May 30 at the Assembly Athletic Complex. Fans can watch the game live on NCAA.com and listen on KRSC 91.3 FM or RSURadio.com with Josh Haley on the call.
