GNAC SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP CENTRAL
WINTHROP, Mass. – Saint Joseph's (Maine) and Lasell earned the two No. 1 seeds in the 2024 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Softball Championship after successful regular seasons. They will be the two hosts of the tournament's double-elimination pods following the GNAC Play-In games, which are scheduled for Tuesday, April 30.
The Monks wrapped up the North Division on Sunday (April 28), finishing with a 10-2 North Division (17-16 overall) record. Meanwhile, the Lasers won the South Division with a 12-2 South Division (23-16 overall) record.
Before either team will see tournament action, however, they must learn the results of the GNAC Play-In Round on Tuesday. The Play-In games will feature the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds in each division. The North Division matchup pits No. 4 North seed Rivier (6-6 North, 15-17 overall) against No. 5 North seed New England College (6-6 North, 14-22 overall) at 7 p.m. In the South Division, No. 5 South seed University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) (6-8 South, 16-22) will face No. 4 South seed Albertus Magnus (9-5 South, 21-18 overall) at 3:30 p.m.
With Rivier and NEC both finishing the year with 6-6 division records, the league's tiebreaking procedure was used to determine seeding. The two teams split their head-to-head meetings offering no relief in the first tiebreaking step. The tied squads' results against their other division foes in rank order were then compared. Both teams were swept by No. 1 North seed Saint Joseph's and both split against No. 2 North seed Emmanuel. It was the Raiders win over No. 3 North seed Simmons, compared to the Pilgrims 0-2 record that gave them the advantage.
After the Play-In Round, the eight remaining teams will be split into two double-elimination pods with each No. 1 seed hosting. Pod A consists of the Monks, the North Division Play-In winner, No. 2 South seed Mitchell (11-3 South, 16-18 overall), and No. 3 South seed Johnson & Wales (11-3 South, 16-18 overall). Pod B includes the Lasers, the South Division Play-In winner, No. 2 North seed Emmanuel (9-3 North, 17-16 overall), and No. 3 North seed Simmons (7-5 North, 13-22 overall).
The league's tiebreaking procedure was also needed to break the stalemate between Mitchell and JWU at 11-3 in the South Division. The Mariners and Wildcats split their lone conference doubleheader, meaning their results against other divisional teams in rank order was needed. The Mariners had a win over No. 1 South seed Lasell, while the Wildcats went 0-2, giving Mitchell the edge.
Pod Play will take place from Thursday, May 2 through Sunday, May 5 with two games scheduled for Thursday, three games scheduled for Saturday, and one or two games planned for Sunday.
The winners of the two pods will then meet for a best-of-three GNAC Softball Championship Series, which is schedule for Friday-Saturday, May 10-11. One game will be played on Friday with the second and "if necessary" game scheduled for Saturday.
The winner of the GNAC Softball Championship Series will be named the 2024 GNAC Softball Champion and earn the league's automatic qualifier into the 2024 NCAA Division III Softball Championship.
2024 GNAC Softball Tournament Schedule
Play-In - Tuesday, April 30
Game 1 - #5N New England College at #4N Rivier, 7 p.m.
Game 2 - #5S University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) at #4S Albertus Magnus, 3:30 p.m.
Pod A Play Day 1 - Thursday, May 2 (Hosted by No. 1N seed Saint Joseph's)
Game 3A – Winner of Game 1 at #1N Saint Joseph's (Maine), 3:30 p.m.
Game 4A - #3S Johnson & Wales vs. #2S Mitchell, 6 p.m.
Pod A Play Day 2 - Saturday, May 4 (Hosted by No. 1N seed Saint Joseph's)
Game 5A - Game 3A Loser vs. Game 4A Loser, 11 a.m.
Game 6A - Game 3A Winner vs. Game 4A Winner, 1:30 p.m.
Game 7A - Game 5A Winner vs. Game 6A Loser, 4 p.m.
Pod A Finals - Sunday, May 5 (Hosted by No. 1N seed Saint Joseph's)
Game 8A - Game 6A Winner vs. Game 7A Winner, Noon
Game 9A - Game 8A opponents, If necessary
Pod B Play Day 1 - Thursday, May 2 (Hosted by No. 1S seed Lasell)
Game 3B – Winner of Game 2 at #1S Lasell, 2 p.m.
Game 4B - #3N Simmons vs. #2N Emmanuel, 4:30 p.m.
Pod B Play Day 2 - Saturday, May 4 (Hosted by No. 1S seed Lasell)
Game 5B - Game 3B Loser vs. Game 4B Loser, 11 a.m.
Game 6B - Game 3B Winner vs. Game 4B Winner, 1:30 p.m.
Game 7B - Game 5B Winner vs. Game 6B Loser, 4 p.m.
Pod B Finals - Sunday, May 5 (Hosted by No. 1S seed Lasell)
Game 8B - Game 6B Winner vs. Game 7B Winner, Noon
Game 9B - Game 8B opponents, If necessary
Championship Series - Friday, May 10 (Host TBD)
Game 10 - Winner of Pod A vs. Winner of Pod B, TBD
Championship Series Day 2- Saturday, May 11 (Host TBD)
Game 11 - Winner of Pod A vs. Winner of Pod B, TBD
Game 12 - Winner of Pod A vs. Winner of Pod B, TBD (if necessary)
ABOUT THE GREAT NORTHEAST ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 16 member institutions and over 4000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
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