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Rowan softball is on the brink of their first ever national championship in program history.
After beating Salisbury in the Super Regionals for the first time since 2016, they have set themselves up as the No. 2 seed in the Division III Softball Championship hosted at Illinois-Wesleyan University in Bloomington, Ill.
Out of the eight teams left, Rowan has the most wins and least amount of losses of any team.
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- Virginia Wesleyan (46-3-1)
- Rowan (48-2)
- Trine (41-5)
- Linfield (43-5)
- Saint Mary’s (MN) (44-5)
- Redlands (39-9)
- Texas Lutheran (44-3)
- Randolph-Macon (39-12)
Rowan has been to the Softball Championship three years in a row for the second time in its program history (’93-’95), but this year is the highest they’ve ever been seeded in the tournament. In 2024, they were the No. 7 seed and were No.6 the year prior in 2023.
Seeding has mattered. In the last two years, Rowan has watched No.2 seeded East Texas Baptist and No.3 seeded Trine take home the crown.
In a season that started with 31 straight wins, the Profs are looking for one more win streak to climb the mountain and stand alone in Division III Softball. 31 is looking to be the magic number for Rowan, as it’s the programs 31st NCAA tournament appearance.
Rowan hosts a 86-66 record all-time in tournament play. Out of the eight teams left, the Profs have the second most all time NCAA Tournament wins. They only trail Linfield, who has 91 wins.
First, Rowan will match up with Texas Lutheran on Thursday, May 29, at 5 P.M. Texas Lutheran comes as a surprise team to many. The Bulldogs defeated No. 1 nationally ranked East Texas Baptist in the Super Regionals last weekend.
This may be threatening to Rowan, but the reigning champions in East Texas Baptist handed Rowan their two losses in the 2024 Division III Softball World Series.
The Profs can’t go on a revenge tour this time around, but they can go on an avenge one. Rowan head coach Kim Wilson looks at Texas Lutheran as a top opponent.
“It’s a different year every year when you’re in it,” Wilson said. “I think that Texas Lutheran is a very good team. All of the teams are going to be good right now.”
Texas Lutheran stands with a 44-3 record and have won five in a row following their conference championship loss back on May 4. The three losses for Texas Lutheran are to St. Thomas. Rowan will look to have a similar result and just be the second team to defeat the Bulldogs.
To do that, Rowan will have to stop the speed of Texas Lutheran, the nation’s leader in steals with 233 as a team. They have only been thrown out 11 times this season.
Rowan will likely send newly honored National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) First Team All-American pitcher Rylee Lutz to the mound. Lutz comes into the World Series with a 0.87 ERA across 136.1 IP. The stage has never been brighter for the senior and her pitching counterpart has never been as close as it is. Texas Lutheran’s starting pitcher matches the ERA of Lutz with 0.87 ERA across 161.2 IP. The two players stand in the top 10 in ERA in all of Division III.
The Glassboro Super Regional MVP, Rylee Lutz, dominated Salisbury going 5.0 IP and striking out seven in the 15-1 victory. She has found a way to stay ahead of the hitters even in her 26th start of the season.
“Mostly, just keeping them on their toes. Throwing in, out, up, down, slowing the speeds, everything,” Lutz said. “I was just trying to mix the speeds as much as possible. Whatever they struck out on last time, I was trying to not throw that same pitch again, just so they didn’t see a pattern in my pitching.”
The only pattern we have seen with Lutz is consistent success and domination. The program leader in all-time wins as a pitcher (78) is having her career best season in ERA and batting average against.
The offenses come in with a slight advantage to Rowan. Leading in AVG with .367 as a team compared to .354 of Texas Lutheran. The Bulldogs lead with power behind their 22 home runs, which looms large compared to the nine of the Profs. Interestingly enough, Bloomington is the highest elevated city in all of Illinois. This may not be Colorado, but the balls might start flying out in the Softball Championship with lower fences and higher elevation.
14 of the 22 home runs for Texas Lutheran have come from junior Serena Gonzalez, including a two home run game in the Regional Championship back on May 17. As Rowan looks to slow her down, they’ll look to keep the bats hot behind leadoff Liz McCaffery coming off a three hit, three RBI, and three walk performance in the Super Regionals against Salisbury. The .414 AVG from McCaffery is third on the team, which shows the productivity of the offense. The second baseman leads the team in hits with 70.
A season full of firsts for the program, including having the first female coach to win 1,000 games at this level, and a program record 48 wins and counting, Rowan softball looks to cement their place in Division III history with their first ever national championship.
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