The Wayne State softball team will play in the NCAA Tournament Great Lakes Regional in Edwardsville, Ill. The four-day tournament begins on Thursday, May 9 with the Warriors, who are the No. 5 seed in the six-team regional, playing No. 2 seeded West Virginia Wesleyan at 11 a.m. (Eastern). If WSU advances, it will play the winner of No. 3 Northern Kentucky and No. 4 Grand Valley at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.

Warriors Finish Season Ranked No. 5 in NCAA Regional Poll
The Warriors finished the season ranked No. 5 in the final NCAA Great Lakes Regional Poll, which was announced on May 6. The top six ranked teams in the poll have advanced to NCAA regional play with host Southern Illinois-Edwardsville earning the No. 1 seed after ending the year ranked No. 1. SIUE will play the No. 6 seed Ashland, who earned its ranking by winning the GLIAC Championship.

Wayne State NCAA Regional History
It is WSU’s first showing in the regionals since 1996 when the Warriors hosted the tournament and placed third. In 1996, WSU dropped a 6-1 decision to Ashland and fell 12-3 to Wisconsin-Parkside. It is Wayne State’s 10th appearance in the NCAA Tournament overall. The Warriors also appeared in 1996, 1994, 1993, 1992, 1990, 1988, 1986, 1984 and 1983. WSU’s top finish in the NCAAs came in 1993 and 1984, where they advanced to the regional championship game.

Head Coach Gary Bryce
Head coach Gary Bryce is in his 21st season at the helm of the Warrior softball program. Bryce has compiled a career-record of 681-439-5 (.607), which ranks him ninth all-time among NCAA Division II coaches. Under Bryce’s guidance, Wayne State’s softball program has been nationally ranked 18 times in his 21 seasons. WSU has made 10 appearances (1983-84-85-86-88-90-92-93-94-96-02) in the NCAA Division II National Championship tournament since the program began in 1982, most of any school in Michigan.

GLIAC Award Winners
The Warriors had six players and coach Bryce earn GLIAC awards, which was announced by the conference office on May 6. Highlighting the honors was freshman Lisa Gauthier, who was named the GLIAC Freshman of the Year. Bryce was honored by being named the GLIAC Coach of the Year for the seventh time in his career and first since 1996. Senior Kelly Kashmerick and sophomore Beth Berry were named to the All-GLIAC First Team, while junior Connie Milroth was selected as a second team pick. Sophomore Maria D’Agostino and junior Betsy Kirk were named All-GLIAC honorable mention.

Last Time Out
WSU was eliminated from play at the GLIAC Tournament in Ashland, Ohio on May 3, falling to Gannon and Ferris State in the double elimination event. The Warriors, who head into NCAA play with a 31-17 record, were eliminated on the first day of play for just the second time in coach Gary Bryce’s career at WSU. WSU began the conference tournament with a 7-3 victory over Saginaw Valley State. However, the Warriors would be shutout the next two games, dropping a 5-0 decision to Gannon and a 2-0 game to Ferris State in the late evening.

News N’ Notes

• Senior Kelly Kashmerick will conclude her career as Wayne State's leader in hits, runs, total bases and doubles. Kashmerick hit her 18th double of the season against Ferris State, which broke the school record for doubles in a season (17), which she tied last year.
• Sophomore Beth Berry ranks first on the team in batting average (.422), home runs (7) and RBI (37).
• Junior Connie Milroth is first on the team in wins (15) and Lisa Gauthier is first on the team in ERA (1.18).
• WSU held a 5-9 record against opponents ranked in the top 25 this season.
• The Warriors finished first in the league in hitting with a .298 batting average, which was 20 points better than the next team.

A complete copy of this week's game notes, including lineups, also is available in PDF. Click here to download.