2017 NAIA Softball World Series Bracket Announced
Story by Chad Waller, NAIA Director of Athletics Communications & Media
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – (Bracket) The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) has announced the official seeds and bracket for the 2017 NAIA Softball World Series that runs May 26 – June 1 in Clermont, Fla. The 10-team, double-elimination event will be played out at the Legends Way Ballfields. PFX Athletics serves as official hosts for the first year. Advanced World Series tickets may be purchased by clicking here.
Nine-time and defending national champion Oklahoma City qualifies for its 30th all-time NAIA Softball World Series and 25th in the last 26 years. The Stars hold NAIA records for most NAIA World Series wins (120), appearances and national titles. Oklahoma City earns its second-straight No. 1 seed and will have a bye. Holding a 64-1 record, the Stars await the winner of No. 8 Southern Oregon and No. 9 Indiana Wesleyan on Saturday, May 27 at 7:30 p.m. EST.
No. 2 seed Columbia (Mo.) advances to its 16th all-time NAIA World Series, the second-most appearances behind Oklahoma City. The Cougars are tied with Oklahoma City for the longest NAIA active season-winning streak with 17-straight victories. LSU Alexandria (La.) and Marian (Ind.) are next in line with eight-consecutive wins.
Corban (Ore.) and Southern Oregon – both out of the Cascade Collegiate Conference – are rookies to the NAIA Softball World Series.
Amongst teams who have previously qualified, Warner (Fla.) is snapping the longest NAIA World Series drought, with its last appearance back in 2008. The Royals take on No. 10 Ottawa (Kan.0 in the event's first game at 10 a.m. Friday, May 26.
The Cascade Collegiate Conference and the Crossroads League each send a pair of qualifiers to the NAIA World Series. Overall, eight conferences are represented in the event.
There will up to 19 games played during a seven-day span on one championship stadium field. There are four games on each of the first three days (May 28 is off day), three contests on May 30, two games on May 31 and the championship final on June 1.
The qualifiers are comprised of 10 NAIA National Championship Opening Round champions, which were completed today. To see those champions, click here.
NAIANetwork.com, the NAIA's official video-streaming platform of NAIA national championship events powered by Stretch Internet, will be broadcasting all 19 games of the 2017 NAIA Softball World Series. The All-World Series package can be purchased for $29.95 or the day package for $9.95. For more information, including how to register for an account, click here.
For more information on the 2017 NAIA Softball World Series, follow along with live updates on the NAIA social media accounts on Twitter (@NAIA), Facebook (@PlayNAIA) and Instagram (@playnaia) using #NAIASBWorldSeries.
For more information on the 2017 NAIA Softball World Series, click here.
| Seed | School Name | World Series Qualification | Overall Record^ | WS Appearances* | WS Record | Last WS Appearance | WS Titles |
| 2 | Columbia (Mo.) | Columbia (Mo.) Bracket Champion | 46-5 | 16th | 15-32 | 2010 | 0 |
| 6 | Corban (Ore.) | Columbia (Ky.) Bracket Champion | 43-11 | 1st | 0-0 | -- | 0 |
| 4 | Davenport (Mich.) | Grand Rapids (Mich.) Bracket Champion | 47-8 | 2nd | 0-3 | 2011 | 0 |
| 9 | Indiana Wesleyan | Bowling Green (Ky.) Bracket Champion | 44-13 | 2nd | 1-2 | 2012 | 0 |
| 5 | LSU Alexandria (La.) | Alexandria (La.) Bracket Champion | 49-8 | 3rd | 1-4 | 2015 | 0 |
| 3 | Marian (Ind.) | Costa Mesa (Calif.) Bracket Champion | 47-4 | 3rd | 1-4 | 2016 | 0 |
| 1 | Oklahoma City | Oklahoma City Bracket Champion | 64-1 | 30th | 120-45 | 2016 | 9 |
| 10 | Ottawa (Kan.) | Sioux City (Iowa) Bracket Champion | 39-16 | 3rd | 0-7 | 2010 | 0 |
| 8 | Southern Oregon | Hattiesburg (Miss.) Bracket Champion | 44-13 | 1st | 0-0 | -- | 0 |
| 7 | Warner (Fla.) | Lawrenceville (Ga.) Bracket Champion | 28-13 | 3rd | 0-6 | 2008 | 0 |
^ DakStats record entered by school
* = includes 2017 World Series
