Raiders Head to National Stage
Southern Oregon softball opens the NAIA World Series as the No. 3 seed, while six Raider track and field athletes qualify for the NAIA Outdoor Championships
ASHLAND, Ore. — Southern Oregon University will have championship hopes on two national stages next week, with the Raider softball team returning to the NAIA Softball World Series and six SOU track and field athletes qualifying for the NAIA Outdoor Championships.
For SOU, the week ahead brings another chance to add to an already rich postseason history. The softball team is back in Columbus, Georgia, chasing a fourth national championship, while Raider distance runners, pole vaulters and sprinter Lilly Pickett will compete for national placement in Asheville, North Carolina.
Raider Softball Opens World Series Against Cumberlands
Southern Oregon will enter the NAIA Softball World Series as the No. 3 overall seed in the 10-team, double-elimination bracket announced Friday by the NAIA national office.
The Raiders, 44-13 overall, will open against No. 6 seed Cumberlands of Kentucky at 1 p.m. Pacific on Thursday, May 21, at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Georgia.
Cumberlands enters the World Series with a 40-19 record after winning the Williamsburg Bracket as a No. 3-seeded host. The Patriots advanced by winning three straight elimination games, including back-to-back victories over top-seeded Keiser of Florida in the final round.
For Southern Oregon, the path to another national title begins with a familiar opponent.
The Raiders also faced Cumberlands during last year’s national championship run, defeating the Patriots 3-0 after Cumberlands entered the bracket as the top overall seed. SOU also defeated Cumberlands 9-1 in the 2023 World Series championship semifinal round.
Last season, Southern Oregon dropped its World Series opener before becoming the first team in the tournament’s 44-year history to win the national championship with seven straight elimination-game victories.
This year, the Raiders’ shortest path to a title is four wins. The winner of the SOU-Cumberlands opener will play at 4 p.m. Pacific on Saturday against No. 2 seed Southeastern of Florida, No. 7 seed College of Idaho or No. 10 seed British Columbia. The loser will play an elimination game at 10 a.m. Pacific on Friday against either College of Idaho or British Columbia.
Madonna of Michigan is the top overall seed in the bracket. Madonna, Mobile of Alabama, Southern Oregon and Southeastern were the only No. 1 seeds to advance out of the Opening Rounds.
Six Raiders Qualify for NAIA Outdoor Championships
Six Raiders have qualified for the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Image provided by SOU Sports Information.
Southern Oregon will also send six track and field athletes to the NAIA Outdoor Championships, which run May 20-22 at Karl Straus Track in Asheville, North Carolina.
The Raiders qualified in six events with eight total entries.
Junior All-America distance runners Alyssa Johnson and Mason Weisgerber will each compete in both the 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters in their third appearances at the national outdoor meet.
Johnson enters as the No. 4 seed in the women’s 5,000 meters and the No. 6 seed in the 10,000 meters. She placed seventh in the 10K and eighth in the 5K at last year’s outdoor championships and won the Cascade Conference 5K last week.
Weisgerber enters as the No. 5 seed in the men’s 10,000 meters and No. 6 seed in the 5,000 meters. He earned All-America honors last year with an eighth-place finish in the 5K.
Carter Stedman, a first-year Raider, will join Weisgerber in the men’s 5,000 meters. Stedman became an All-American in the fall with a fourth-place finish at the NAIA Cross Country Championships.
In the women’s pole vault, Katherine Martinez will make another national appearance as the No. 7 seed, while Sydney Perkins will compete at nationals for the first time.
Freshman Lilly Pickett will represent SOU in the women’s 400 meters. The Turner sprinter won the Cascade Conference title in the event last week and enters nationals with the field’s 14th-best qualifying time. Pickett is already an All-American after placing sixth in the 600 meters at the NAIA Indoor Championships in March.
Cover image: Southern Oregon University softball players celebrate during the Raiders’ postseason run. SOU enters the NAIA Softball World Series as the No. 3 overall seed. Photo by Courtney Blumer, courtesy SOU Sports Information.
SOU NAIA Outdoor Championships Schedule
All times Pacific.
Wednesday, May 20
8:30 a.m. — Women’s Pole Vault: Katherine Martinez, Sydney Perkins
5:20 p.m. — Women’s 10,000m: Alyssa Johnson
6:10 p.m. — Men’s 10,000m: Mason Weisgerber
Thursday, May 21
1 p.m. — Women’s 400m prelims: Lilly Pickett
Friday, May 22
12:40 p.m. — Women’s 400m final: Lilly Pickett, if qualified
1:35 p.m. — Women’s 5,000m: Alyssa Johnson
1:55 p.m. — Men’s 5,000m: Carter Stedman, Mason Weisgerber
Recent Sports
