PORTLAND, Ore. – The top-ranked Great Northwest Athletic Conference softball teams, No. 13 Western Washington and No. 14 Northwest Nazarene, topped the latest NCAA regional rankings which were released on Wednesday.
The Vikings (36-6, 16-4 GNAC) occupied the top spot on the list of the top-10 reams in the west region, while the Nighthawks (35-8, 20-4) were ranked second. Saint Martin’s (21-18, 12-8) also checked into the regional rankings, appearing at No. 7 on the list. The rankings will ultimately be used to determine the eight-team field for the 2024 NCAA West Region Championships.
NCAA Softball Regional Rankings (April 24, 2024) | |||
Rank | School | Conference | Record |
1 | Western Washington | GNAC | 34-6 |
2 | Northwest Nazarene | GNAC | 35-8 |
3 | Concordia-Irvine | PacWest | 35-11 |
4 | CSU Dominguez Hills | CCAA | 31-15 |
5 | CSU San Marcos | CCAA | 28-19 |
6 | CSU East Bay | CCAA | 23-18 |
7 | Saint Martin's | GNAC | 21-18 |
8 | Sonoma State | CCAA | 27-15 |
9 | Azusa Pacific | PacWest | 26-17 |
10 | CSU San Bernardino | CCAA | 25-18 |
With the final weekend of the regular season kicking off on Friday, the focus shifts to seeding for the upcoming GNAC Softball Championships. Northwest Nazarene has clinched at least a share of the 2024 regular-season title, as the Nighthawks will become the third team in GNAC history to win four consecutive regular-season championships. Western Washington could catch NNU if it goes 4-0 in its series at Western Oregon this weekend, but one loss by the Vikings would slate the Nighthawks as the No. 1 seed and the Vikings as the No. 2 seed.
Saint Martin’s plays at Montana State Billings (9-34-1, 2-18) needing just one win in its final four games to avoid a tiebreaker determining its spot in the conference tournament. Central Washington (15-26, 10-10) is in the driver’s seat to clinch the fourth GNAC Championships berth, entering the final weekend two games ahead of fifth-place Western Oregon (20-23, 8-12) in the standings. The Wildcats host Simon Fraser (9-29, 4-16), while the Wolves will need a minimum of two upset victories over the Vikings to stay alive in the playoff hunt.
GNAC Softball Schedule - April 26-28 |
Home Team | Opponent | Start Times |
Central Washington | Simon Fraser | Friday (1 p.m. PT)/Saturday (1 p.m. PT) |
Montana State Billings | Saint Martin's | Friday (1 p.m. MT)/Saturday (Noon MT) |
Western Oregon | #13 Western Washington | Saturday (Noon PT)/Sunday (Noon PT) |
2024 GNAC Softball Championships |
The 2024 GNAC Softball Championships will be played May 2-4 at Viking Field on the campus of Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. The four-team double-elimination tournament will determine the recipient of the conference's automatic berth in the NCAA Championships. The top-four teams in the final GNAC regular-season standings earn berths into the conference tournament.
GNAC Softball In The Rankings |
The National Fastpitch Coaches Association releases its national rankings every at noon (ET) on every Tuesday throughout the season, beginning on Feb. 13. The 2024 preseason coaches poll was released on Jan. 23.
Western Washington slipped two spots to No. 13, while Northwest Nazarene climbed to its highest ranking thus far in 2024 up to No. 14 in the latest national poll.
NFCA National Rankings | ||
Poll | Team 1 | Team 2 |
Preseason | 25. NNU | -- |
Week 1 - 2/13 | 18. WWU | 24. NNU |
Week 2 - 2/20 | 16. WWU | 24. NNU |
Week 3 - 2/27 | 16. WWU | 22. NNU |
Week 4 - 3/5 | 14. WWU | 21. NNU |
Week 5 - 3/12 | 15. WWU | 18. NNU |
Week 6 - 3/19 | 14. WWU | 16. NNU |
Week 7 - 3/26 | 13. WWU | 22. NNU |
Week 8 - 4/2 | 12. WWU | 19. NNU |
Week 9 - 4/9 | 11. WWU | 18. NNU |
Week 10 - 4/16 | 11. WWU | 17. NNU |
Week 11 - 4/24 | 13. WWU | 14. NNU |
GNAC Softball In The NCAA Statistical Rankings |
Through games April 24, 2024.
2024 GNAC Softball Players of the Week |
Date | Player of the Week | Pitcher of the Week |
2/5 | Cassidy Affeldt, Simon Fraser | Sidney Booth, Northwest Nazarene |
2/12 | Emma Andrewjeski, Western Washington | Chloe Leverington, Saint Martin's |
2/19 | Laney Kaysner, Central Washington | Ashlee Laver, Central Washington |
2/26 | Abigail Gagnon, Northwest Nazarene | Sidney Booth, Northwest Nazarene |
3/4 | Emma Bumatay, Northwest Nazarene | Kaiana Kong, Western Washington |
3/11 | Teagan Seeton, Montana State Billings | Mackenzee Collins, Western Oregon |
3/18 | Alyssa Benthagen, Central Washington | Gina Skinner, Northwest Nazarene |
3/25 | Hailey Rath, Western Washington | Alli Kimball, Western Washington |
4/1 | Maleah Andrews, Western Washington | Mackenzee Collins, Western Oregon |
4/8 | Heather Ebner, Saint Martin's | Joie Baker, Western Washington |
4/15 | Hailey Rath, Western Washington | Sidney Booth, Northwest Nazarene |
4/22 | Grace McMillan, Simon Fraser | Sidney Booth, Northwest Nazarene |
April 22 GNAC Softball Players of the Week
Player of the Week – Grace McMillan, Simon Fraser
First-career player of the week.
McMillan led all GNAC players in hitting last week, batting .857 (12-for-14) and reaching base at a clip of .867 in the Red Leafs’ 3-1 series win over Montana State Billings. McMillan failed to reach base just two times in her 15 plate appearances over the weekend, finishing off with a 4-for-4 performance in the series finale. McMillan drove in eight runs, scored seven times and slugged 1.063 during the series.
“Grace has been a tough out all year, and has been really fun to watch in her freshman year,” said Simon Fraser head coach Stacy Fournier. “She’s a competitor and understands the game, yet is always asking good questions and wanting to get better. We talked about rolling into the last couple weekends playing our best softball, whether we have a chance at GNACs or not, and Grace has definitely done that. I am excited for her and her career here at SFU.”
Also Nominated: Alyssa Benthagen, CWU; Lauren Blaschak, MSUB; Keana Bell, NNU; Hailey Rath, WWU.
Pitcher of the Week – Sidney Booth, Northwest Nazarene
12th-career pitcher of the week, fourth this season.
Booth delivered one of the best pitching performances the GNAC has seen this season, allowing seven baserunners in 13 1/3 shutout innings of work in the Nighthawks’ sweep of Western Oregon. The senior racked up a GNAC-high 21 strikeouts and contributed in all four of her team’s victories, totaling a pair of wins and a save. Booth had 11 strikeouts in Friday’s seven-inning shutout, marking the third time this season she has reached double digits in strikeouts in a game. Booth added to her GNAC record pitcher of the week total with the 12th of her career.
Also Nominated: Ashlee Laver, CWU; Alli Kimball, WWU.
2024 All-Tournament Selections |
2024 GNAC PRESEASON SOFTBALL COACHES POLL | ||||
Rank | Team (1st Place Votes) | 2023 | GNAC Record (Finish) | Points |
1. | Northwest Nazarene (7) | 39-17 | 21-3 (1st) | 49 |
2. | Western Washington | 26-23 | 13-11 (3rd) | 41 |
3. | Saint Martin's | 29-18 | 15-9 (2nd) | 35 |
4. | Western Oregon | 22-30 | 11-13 (4th) | 25 |
5. | Central Washington | 21-27 | 9-15 (6th) | 19 |
6. | Montana State Billings | 18-28 | 10-14 (5th) | 17 |
7. | Simon Fraser | 11-36 | 5-19 (7th) | 10 |
Points awarded on a 7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. |