The Linfield Wildcats are one of eight Division III softball programs which have earned the right to compete for a national crown this week in Marshall, Texas, site of the 2023 NCAA Softball Championship.
 
Action begins Thursday, June 1, and runs through Wednesday, June 7, in Marshall, a city of about 24,000 located 34 miles from the Texas-Louisiana border. The double-elimination tournament is hosted by East Texas Baptist University.
 
Linfield (46-4) is the tournament's No. 2 seed and will play seventh-seeded Coe (37-9) Thursday at 4 p.m. CDT (2 p.m. PDT).
 
Other challengers for the 2023 championship include Salisbury (44-3), Trine (40-4), Christopher Newport (41-11), Berry (41-5), Rowan (41-8) and Moravian (37-10).
 
WHAT'S AT STAKE
Having won NCAA softball championships in 2007 and 2011, Linfield is in position to claim its third national crown in 16 years. To win the 2023 crown, the Wildcats must navigate the double-elimination format that features two pods of four teams each. The winner from each pod will square off in a best-of-three series to determine the national champion.

FOLLOW THE ACTION
The NCAA and Tupuleo-Honey are teaming up to provide live video webcasts of all championship tournament games. Live statistics are also available through ETBU. Tournament results can be tracked on the NCAA Division III softball home page.
 
HOW THEY GOT HERE
The Wildcats, champions of the Northwest Conference, enter the NCAA Championship on a roll. Linfield has won eight straight contests and 27 of the last 28 games, including Regional and Super Regional sweeps of Redlands (Calif.) and Bethel (Minn.), respectively.
 
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING
The Wildcats are 80-36 all-time in the NCAA Division III softball playoffs. Linfield also advanced as far as the Division III championship game in 2010, falling to East Texas Baptist, and 2012, losing to Pacific Lutheran.
 
Linfield owns a perfect 3-0 record versus Coe, the Wildcats' first-round opponent, including a 5-2 win over the Kohawks at the 2006 NCAA Championship in Raleigh, N.C. Most recently, Linfield topped Coe 7-1 during the 2022 NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Georgia.
   
THURSDAY, JUNE 1
Game 1: Salisbury (Md.) vs. Moravian (Pa.), 11 a.m. CDT (9 a.m. PDT)
Game 2: Christopher Newport (Va.) vs. Berry (Ga.), 1:30 p.m. CDT (11:30 a.m. PDT) 
Game 3: Linfield (Ore.) vs. Coe (Iowa), 4 p.m. CDT (2 p.m. PDT)
Game 4: Trine (Ind.) vs. Rowan (N.J.), 6:30 p.m. CDT (4:30 PDT)

FRIDAY, JUNE 2
Game 5: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 (elimination game), 11 a.m. CDT (9 a.m. PDT)
Game 6: Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4 (elimination game), 1:30 p.m. CDT (11:30 a.m. PDT)
Game 7: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 4 p.m. CDT (2 p.m. PDT)
Game 8: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 6:30 p.m. CDT (4:30 p.m. PDT)
 
SATURDAY, JUNE 3
Game 9: Winner of Game 5 vs. Loser of Game 8 (elimination game), 11 a.m. CDT (9 a.m. PDT)
Game 10: Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 7 (elimination game), 1:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m. PDT)
 
SUNDAY, JUNE 4
Game 11: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 9, noon CDT (10 a.m. PDT)
Game 12: Winner Game 8 vs. Winner Game 10, 2:30 p.m. CDT (12:30 PDT)
 
MONDAY, JUNE 5
Rest Day
 
TUESDAY, JUNE 6
Championship Series Game 1, 11 a.m. CDT (9 a.m. PDT)
 
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 7
Championship Series Game 2, 11 a.m. CDT (9 a.m. PDT)
Championship Series Game 3, 1:30 p.m. CDT (11:30 a.m. PDT), if necessary
   
NO. 1 SALISBURY SEA GULLS (44-3)
The top-ranked team in the NFCA rankings since March 14, Salisbury enters the NCAA Division III Championship for the second straight season and 11^th time overall. The Sea Gulls swept Lebanon Valley in the Super Regionals to extend their win streak to eight games. Their 44-3 record entering the tournament marks the program's ninth 40-win season and is one win shy of matching the school's single-season record. Seven players earned All-Region V honors. Lindsey Windsor is batting .401 with 57 hits and 50 RBI. Abby Mace is slugging .742 with 12 doubles, four triples and nine home runs. Three pitchers have 10 or more wins. A two-way all-star, Windsor is 15-1 in the circle with four shutouts and a 1.14 ERA. Savannah Sheats is the team's No. 2 option with 13 wins and a 0.99 ERA in 85 innings pitched.
 
NO. 2 LINFIELD WILDCATS (46-4)
Ranked No. 4 in the latest NFCA Top 25, Linfield advanced to its seventh NCAA Finals and first since 2015 with a pair of 1-0 wins over Bethel at the Wildcats' own McMinnville Super Regional. Jackson Vaughan is one win away from No. 800 in his 22-year head coaching career. Linfield's 46 wins are the most since the program's 2012 team that finished as the national runner-up. The Wildcats nearly swept the All-Northwest Conference major awards after claiming the school's 18^th regular-season title with a near-perfect 27-1 conference record. The two-time defending NWC Pitcher of the Year, Tayah Kelley is 33-1 with 26 complete games, 11 shutouts and a 1.43 ERA. Her 245 strikeouts are seven shy of matching her program single-season record of 252, established last year. Katie Phillips repeated as the NWC Player of the Year and is the Wildcats' all-time leader in games played (206), games started (206), at-bats (718), doubles (66) and triples (14). She leads the 'Cats with 20 doubles, six triples and 66 RBI. Kaili Saathoff is batting .455 with 76 hits and 63 runs. The team's leader in home runs with seven, Claire Seats is second to Phillips with 63 RBI.
 
NO. 3 TRINE THUNDER (40-4)
Fifth-ranked Trine is riding a 17-game win streak after sweeping Concordia Wisconsin in the Super Regionals. The Thunder makes its fifth trip to the NCAA Championship after falling to Christopher Newport in the championship series in 2022. The 40 wins are tied for second-most in program history. The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association regular-season and tournament champion, Trine landed six players on the All-Region VII Team. The MIAA Pitcher of the Year, Anna Koeppl is 15-0 with a 0.33 ERA. Debbie Hill and Alexis Michon lead the team with 84 innings pitched apiece. Both have 100-plus strikeouts on the season. Hill's .447 batting average, .566 on-base percentage, .935 slugging percentage, 55 hits, 17 doubles, 13 homers, 50 RBI and 34 walks all lead the Thunder.
 
NO. 4 CHRISTOPHER NEWPORT CAPTAINS (31-11)
Christopher Newport looks to defend its Division III softball crown. The Captains had to fight to punch their ticket to the program's fourth NCAA Championship appearance, taking Virginia Wesleyan to three games at the Super Regionals before winning 6-4 in the championship game. Brooke Greaver was named the Coast-To-Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year, entering the tournament with a .396 batting average, .522 on-base percentage and .851 slugging percentage. Her 40 hits, seven doubles, 13 home runs and 41 RBI are all team-leading marks. Meredith Brickner is second on the team with 26 RBI. Ace pitcher Kate Alger is 16-5 with a 1.33 ERA. She tossed two no-hitters and a perfect game this season.
 
NO. 5 BERRY VIKINGS (41-5)
Berry is one of four teams returning to the NCAA Championship after bouncing Belhaven from the Super Regionals with a pair of shutout victories on its home field. The second-ranked Vikings' 41 wins set a new program record. The Southern Athletic Association Player of the Year, Katie White is batting .464 with a .500 on-base percentage and a .768 slugging percentage. She holds team-leading marks in hits (70), runs (49) and doubles (17). Morgan Frye has driven in most of the runs for the Vikings, sending 51 runners across the plate and hitting 13 homers. Hannah Gore and Blair Hall have seen the most action in the circle. Gore is 16-1 with six shutouts, two saves, 121 strikeouts and a 1.00 ERA.
 
NO. 6 ROWAN PROFS (41-8)
Ranked No. 20 by the NFCA in the latest poll, Rowan upset No. 9 Randolph-Macon on the road in three games in the Super Regionals. The Profs are making their seventh appearance in the NCAA Championship and first since 2018 after earning an at-large bid on Selection Day. Five student-athletes were selected to the All-Region IV Team. The group was highlighted by Rylee Lutz, who has collected 23 wins, 20 complete games, nine shutouts and a 1.64 ERA in 36 appearances and 28 starts. Payton MacNair leads the way with 60 hits and 20 doubles while Cat Thomas has hit nine homers and driven in 46 runs. Liz McCaffery has 56 hits and 44 runs and is a perfect 21 for 21 on stolen base attempts.
 
NO. 7 COE KOHAWKS (37-9)
Coe went 2-0 against unranked Hiram as the Kohawks hosted the Cedar Rapids Super Regional. The 21^st-ranked Kohawks will compete for a national title for the first time since 2009. Ellie Thurow and Hannah Ausenhus have split time as Coe's ace pitchers. Both have 14 wins in the circle with 80-plus strikeouts. Thurow owns a 1.13 ERA while Ausenhus has 15 complete games and two shutouts. Heather Boeckenstedt's .373 batting average, 56 hits and 42 runs have sparked the Kohawk lineup. Skyler Stookey has crushed 15 home runs and driven in 48 runs.
 
NO. 8 MORAVIAN GREYHOUNDS (37-10)
Unranked Moravian shocked the Division III softball world when it went to Cambridge, Massachusetts and took down No. 16 MIT in a three-game Super Regional tournament. The Greyhounds dropped the opener but won 5-2 and 8-0 in five innings to advance to the NCAA Championship for the fourth time in program history. Madi Cunningham has 18 wins in the circle with a 2.00 ERA in 164 1/3 innings pitched. Holly Walter is the team's leader in hits (59) and runs (42) and is 18 for 19 on stolen base attempts. Emily Silberman has 35 RBI while Marcie Silbermann leads the Greyhounds with six home runs.