‘We’ve been through a grind.’ Kentucky softball earns 15th straight NCAA Tournament bid.
Kentucky’s softball team kept its streak of NCAA Tournament bids alive with its 15th straight when the bracket was announced Sunday night.
The Wildcats (30-22) earned an at-large bid into the field of 64 and will play in the Stillwater Regional hosted by Oklahoma State, who earned the No. 5 overall national seed.
Kentucky was 8-16 and lost its last four games of the regular season prior to being knocked out of the SEC Tournament in a play-in game. However, the Wildcats’ tough schedule and 10 wins against Quad 1 teams still put them at 28th in the nation in the RPI.
“We’ve been through a grind this season. We’ve played the best of the best,” UK head coach Rachel Lawson said. “It’s been a lot. We’ve learned a lot. We’ve gotten some big hits. We’ve had some situations where we’ve gotten knocked down, but in the end we’ve always picked ourselves back up. So I think that the experience of the season has really helped us, and hopefully it’ll serve us well moving forward.”
The SEC received a tournament-high 13 NCAA bids as every team received a spot in the field for the fourth time in the last five seasons.
“I think we can get a little daunted with the SEC. It’s pretty cool that all 13 SEC teams are in the tournament this year,” UK star Erin Coffel said. “I think that’s a statement for itself right there. We’ve played the best of the best already, and I think we’re prepared for it.”
The Wildcats will open NCAA play at 3 p.m. ET Friday against Michigan in a game televised on ESPN2. The host Cowboys will play against Northern Colorado following that matchup.
Each regional is double-elimination with the winner of the Stillwater Regional advancing to face the winner of the Fayetteville Regional in the super regional round.
Texas received the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament. Right behind Texas (47-7) was rival Oklahoma, the three-time reigning champion, as the No. 2 seed. The Sooners (49-6) defeated the Longhorns 5-1 in the Big 12 championship game Saturday to conclude both teams’ final season in the conference.
Kentucky’s top hitters
Fifth-year outfielder Rylea Smith leads the way with a .371 batting average to go with four home runs, five triples, 24 RBI and 11 stolen bases. Senior shortstop Erin Coffel is tied for the team lead with 13 home runs while batting .333 with 33 RBI and has been walked 46 times and been by a pitch 15 times. Senior infielder Grace Lorsung also has 13 home runs and has a team-high 34 RBI and 12 doubles while batting .280.
Kentucky’s top pitchers
Senior Stephanie Schoonover is 18-9 with a 2.76 ERA and has 169 strikeouts in 159 2/3 innings. She has pitched 13 complete games with five shutouts and one save. Next up is freshman Sydney Langdon, who is 5-5 with a 4.22 ERA in 61 1/3 innings.
Kentucky’s first opponent
Michigan, the Big Ten Tournament champion, is 41-16 overall and was 17-5 in league play. The Wolverines have won three straight, including defeating Indiana 3-1 in the league championship game.
UK and Michigan’s last head-to-head matchup came in the 2023 John Cropp Classic in Lexington with the Wildcats prevailing 2-1.
