MEDFORD, MA (May 14, 2025) – Since the NCAA Division III Softball Tournament started in 1982, a total of 19 teams have earned 20 or more NCAA berths in their program history. Three of them will be at Rowan University this week, including Tufts University, as 2025 Regional play starts tomorrow.
The Jumbos, making their 23rd tournament appearance, will play Game 2 of the Regional on Thursday at 1:30 PM against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). The Engineers are the only team out of the four at the Regional without 20+ NCAA berths, as they earned their seventh this week.
Host Rowan University, in their 30th NCAA berth, are one of just three Division III teams with 30 or more. The Profs will host Game 1 of the Regional at 11 AM on Thursday versus SUNY Cortland, which is making its 23rd appearance.
Each of the four teams is hoping to advance through this weekend's Regional to the Super Regional round May 22-23. The Rowan Regional winner will play the winner of the Regional hosted by Salisbury University which includes Westminster College (Pa.), Pfeiffer University and the University of Mount Union.
All of the 64 teams in this year's NCAA Division III Championship start a run this week that they hope will end up at the NCAA Championship Finals May 29 to June 4 at Inspiration Field in Bloomington, Illinois.
In line with the number of NCAA appearances the teams have made, Tufts, Rowan and Cortland have been to the NCAA Finals 25 times combined. Tufts and Rowan were at the NCAA Finals in Texas last year. The Profs have been to the finals nine times and the Jumbos eight. Cortland has made eight finals appearances as well. Tufts won three straight NCAA titles from 2013-15, while the Red Dragons were the runner-up to the Jumbos in 2013.
Here's a closer look at this weekend's four teams:
Tufts (28-13)
The Jumbos have a 24-3 record since late March after starting the year 4-10 while playing a number of Top 10 teams. Tufts was the #1 team in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) for the regular-season and then won the NESCAC title at home on Spicer Field. They enter the Regional averaging 5.10 runs per game with a .302 batting average. The team earned run average is a 2.94 mark.
Five Jumbos were just named to the NESCAC All-Conference teams – pitcher
Sophia DiCocco,
Kaitlyn Perucci at first base, catcher
Keriann Slayton,
Bela Jimenez at second base and
Heaven Oliva at third base. Pitchers DiCocco (16-6, 2.40 era),
Lacy Chilek (7-0, 2.70) and
Fallon O'Connor (her six saves rank fifth in Division III) have worked well together as a staff. Tufts' 27 home runs are the team's most since 2016, led by nine from Oliva. The team's .969 fielding percentage is the best in NESCAC.
Rensselaer (28-11)
The Engineers are in the NCAA's for the third straight year with an at-large berth after losing in the Liberty League (LL) Championship game to Ithaca College. RPI, who split a double-header with Williams College during the regular season, was the fourth seed for the LL regular-season and then advanced to the conference final and earned the NCAA at-large berth.
RPI averages 5.15 runs per game with a .306 team batting average. The pitching era is at 2.32 entering Thursday's game. Four Engineers were recognized as Liberty League all-stars – Callista Adamo (.417 batting average), Ava Markert (14-6, 2.04 era), Evann McDowell (.976 fielding percentage at second base) and Sydney Speanburg (.451 on-base percentage). Gaby Heim (9-4, 2.28) was the LL Rookie of the Year.
Rowan (43-2)
The Profs won the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) crown for the second year in a row. The #4 team in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association DIII poll, their only losses have been to College of New Jersey (5-2 on April 15) and Ramapo College (2-0 on May 10). Rowan leads the nation with a 1.01 team earned run average. Offensively, they are batting .370 (seventh in Division III) with 7.07 runs scored per game. Their 43 wins are a school record, and 25 games have been won by shutout to lead the nation.
Rylee Lutz (19-1, 0.78) and Emily McCutcheon (18-1, 0.90) make up a fantastic 1-2 punch in the pitcher's circle for Rowan. They are sixth and seventh, respectively, in the nation for era. Lutz and McCutcheon along with Kate Evick Payton MacNair, Liz McCaffery, McKenzie Melvin and Abigail Pawlowski were on the NJAC All-Conference teams. McCaffery's 58 runs scored are fourth-most in the country, while Melvin and McNair join her in having 60+ hits this season.
SUNY Cortland (23-14)
The Red Dragons are returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019 after winning the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) title versus Oneonta. Cortland was the top seed in the tournament by virtue of winning the conference regular-season title. Similar to Tufts' path, Cortland started off the season 4-12 and have gone 19-2 since.
They enter the Regional averaging 6.54 runs per game while hitting at a .314 clip. The pitching staff has a 2.89 era. Seven Cortland players earned All-SUNYAC honors, with all seven earning first-team recognition - McKenna Barry, Maggie Cummings, Gianna Endieveri (also Rookie of the Year), Kaeli McAnally, Lainie Ornstein, Laila Smith and Halle Wright. Endievery (9-4, 2.28) and Barry (11-5, 2.63) lead the pitching staff, while Wright (.413, 35 rbis) and Cummings (.396, 10 doubles) have had the biggest bats.
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Visit the Rowan Regional Website
--JUMBOS--
