Mustangs advance to first NAIA World Series

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Fourth-seeded Mount Mercy advanced to the NAIA Softball World Series for the first time in program history after defeating third-seeded Indiana Southeast, 2-1, in the second of two championship games at the NAIA Softball Championship Opening Round tournament on Wednesday at Battle High School.

Indiana Southeast needed to beat Mount Mercy twice on Wednesday and the Grenadiers finally got to right-hander Jayna Witzany (21-7) in the opener. Witzany struck out 12 in a 2-hit shutout of Indiana Southeast on Tuesday, but gave up five earned runs on six hits while striking out five and walking one in four innings in their second matchup. Kalli Minger tossed three scoreless innings in relief the 5-0 defeat. Jess Heick, Emily Oler, and Natalie Tecklenburg each had two hits for the Mustangs.

Mount Mercy scored a run in back-to-back innings to take a 2-0 lead in game two. Morgan Braughton led off the third with a double to left-center and scored on a sacrifice fly by Oler. Then in the fourth, it was Braughton who came through again, driving in Tecklenburg with an RBI double to center. Meanwhile, Indiana Southeast left runners on base in each of the first three innings as Oler kept the Grenadier bats in check.

Still trailing, 2-0, Indiana Southeast (48-18) refused to go quietly, loading the bases with no outs in the sixth before managing only one run to cut the Mount Mercy lead in half. Then in the seventh, the Grenadiers got a base hit and a walk with two outs but Oler closed the door again to clinch a World Series berth for the Mustangs.

Mount Mercy (36-15) is seeded seventh in the 10-team, double-elimination NAIA Softball World Series and will take on 10th-seeded Houston-Victoria on Thursday, May 27, at 9:00 a.m. Central Time at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga. The winner gets second-seeded Oregon Tech on Friday at 3:00 p.m. Central while the loser drops into an elimination game on Friday at 9:00 a.m.