OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City launches into its 13^th consecutive home NAIA Opening Round on Monday and at 7 p.m., takes on the winner of the afternoon game between British Columbia and Williams Baptist.
 
Williams Baptist and UBC open the tournament at 1 p.m., followed by a 4 p.m. game pitting Grand View against Blue Mountain Christian.
 
OCU Notebook
Last Year's OKC Bracket: The Stars won their opener over Morningside, 5-0, but then lost to Missouri Baptist, 5-3. After eliminating Morningside, 11-1, OCU won the necessary two games against Missouri Baptist, 6-5 and 4-3, to win the bracket. Iliana Ashford, Tara Hoehner and Analise Rayburn had solo home runs in the if necessary game. Carlee Mollet added an RBI single.
 
SAC Champions: Oklahoma City got its first Sooner Athletic Conference Tournament title since 2022 with a 6-1 win over Science and Arts of Oklahoma on Saturday. After falling behind 1-0, the Stars scored six unanswered runs to snap a six-game slump in the rivalry with the Drovers. USAO broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the third on an RBI single by Lilyanna Portillo. The Stars broke up the shutout by of Jayden Anderson with a three-run fourth inning. Tara Hoehner led off the inning with a single and stole second before taking third on a base hit by Analise Rayburn. After Peyton Barrow was hit by a pitch to load the bases, USAO called upon ace Aubree Ferguson. Ferguson struck out two Stars before freshman Kaiden Spidell ripped a 3-2 pitch to right field for three runs. Brynlee Alsip worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth and retired the last seven batters in order to get the win and improve to 28-4 on the season. The Stars, for the second time in the tournament, got back-to-back home runs by Hoehner and Rayburn, putting the Stars ahead 6-1 in the top of the seventh. Hadley Gibson had reached prior to Hoehner's homer. It was Rayburn's 24^th and Hoehner's 17^th home runs of the season. The Stars had nine hits, including two each by Spidell, Hoehner and Rayburn.
 
All-SAC: Oklahoma City had nine players honored, including Player of the Year Analise Rayburn, Newcomer of the Year Kaiden Spidell and Freshman of the Year Hadley Gibson on the All-Sooner Athletic Conference Softball Team, the league announced Wednesday. Joining Rayburn, Spidell and Gibson as First Team All-SAC are Brynlee Alsip, Tara Hoehner and Gabby Moreno. Carlee Mollet was named to the second team, Iliana Ashford received honorable mention and Peyton Barrow was a Gold Glove honoree.
 
OCU in the Postseason: The Stars are 4-0 in the postseason, including a win at No. 4 USAO in the SAC Championship. The Stars are hitting .412 in the postseason and have three batters, Gabby Moreno (.583), Tara Hoehner (.538) and Kaiden Spidell (.500) hitting .500 or better since the regular season ended. Hoehner and Analise Rayburn have provided the power bats. Hoehner has three home runs and 10 RBIs and Rayburn has two home runs and two RBIs. Both of Rayburn's home runs have come as back-to-back jacks with Hoehner. Brynlee Alsip is 3-0 with a 2.263 ERA and OCU has a 3.08 postseason ERA.
 
Stars at Home: The Stars are 24-1 at home this season with a .410 batting average. Tara Hoehner is hitting .500 and Hadley Gibson has a 493 average in Ann Lacy Stadium. Analise Rayburn has 13 home runs and 38 RBIs on the home field and Hoener has 10 home runs and 42 runs batted in. Brynlee Alsip is 14-0 at home with a 1.79 ERA. McKenna Snyder is 4-0 in the home circle with a 1.87 ERA.
 
OCU at the Plate: The Stars are hitting .402 this season, led by Tara Hoehner at .485 with 17 home runs and 74 RBIs. SAC Player of the Year Analise Rayburn has a .436 average to go with 24 hone runs and a NAIA-best 93 RBIs. Rayburn and Gibson share the team lead with 21 doubles.
 
Stars in the Circle: Brynlee Alsip is 28-4 on the year with a 1.41 earned run average. As a team, OCU carries a 1.98 ERA into the Opening Round.
 
OCU on the Bases: The Stars are 126 of 140 in stolen bases, led by Hadley Gibson with 28 thefts. Gabby Moreno has 23.
 
About British Columbia: The Stars blanked British Columbia in the second game of the season on Feb. 6, 4-0, in eight innings. Kindalyn Miller pitched six innings of relief for the win. Iliana Ashford has a double and single, driving in two runs to lead the OCU offense. Clare VanSpall had two hits for UBC. The Thunderbirds are 27-21 on the season. Carleen Murray, the Cascade Collegiate Conference Pitcher of the Year, was 17-12 with a 1.41 earned run average. UBC has a 2.52 team ERA. The Thunderbirds are hitting .265 as a team, led by Brielle Donoghue at 331.
 
About BMCC: Blue Mountain Christian swept a doubleheader at home against Williams Baptist in February. The Toppers are 38-15-1 on the season. BMCC has a team batting average of .327 led by Aspen Teague at .408 and Anna Harrison at .401. Madison Montgomery is 14-5 in the circle with a 2.50 earned run average. The Toppers have a 2.97 team ERA.
 
About GVU: Grand View is 37-16 overall with a team batting average of .299 and a team earned run average of 2.20. Elle Nelson leads the Vikings with a .238 batting average. Alexia Jarrett (11 home runs) and Caedence Risius (10 homers) have supplied the power.
 
About WBU: Williams Baptist is 41-13 on the season. The Eagles hit .318 as a team with Ashlyn Michael hitting .390. Addison Foster cranked 14 home runs and led the team with 52 RBIs. WBU has a 2.71 team ERA, led by Emberlin Caldwell at 1.99 with a 22-5 record.
 
Bracket History: Oklahoma City University, the only university that has hosted a NAIA Opening Round Softball Bracket since the concept began in 2013, hosts four teams next week.
 
The NAIA announced the field for the Oklahoma City bracket on Wednesday evening. Joining the Stars at Ann Lacy Stadium are Grand View, Blue Mountain Christian, British Columbia and Williams Baptist and they are seeded two through five in that order. Grand View is making its third trip to the Oklahoma City bracket.
 
The Stars will play at 7 p.m. against the winner of the first game, which has UBC taking on Williams Baptist.
 
Schedule
Monday
Game 1: 1 p.m. – (4) British Columbia vs. (5) Williams Baptist
Game 2: 4 p.m. – (2) Grand View vs. (3) Blue Mountain Christian
Game 3: 7 p.m. – (1) Oklahoma City vs Game 1 Winner
Tuesday
Game 4: 1 p.m. – Loser 1 vs. Loser 2
Game 5: 4 p.m. – Winner 2 vs. Winner 3
Game 6: 7 p.m. – Winner 4 vs. Loser 3
Wednesday
Game 7: 1 p.m. – Loser 5 vs. Winner 6
Game 8: 4 p.m. – Winner 5 vs. Winner 7
Thursday
Game 9 – 1 p.m. if necessary
 
OCU has hosted a softball opening round bracket since the concept began in 2013 and is the only school to do so. The Stars are 35-8 in Opening Round games and have won the bracket nine of the 12 years. The Stars missed the OR finals just once, in 2021 when they went 1-2.
 
All-Time Win-Loss in the OCU Bracket
Team                                                         Win-Loss  Years                     Championships
Bellevue                                                    4-4              2013, 2017
Concordia Nebraska                               1-2              2015
Concordia Oregon                                   3-1              2015                       1 (2015)
Dickinson State                                        0-2              2021
Doane                                                        1-2              2016
Eastern Oregon                                       2-4              2018, 2022
Freed-Hardeman                                     1-4              2013, 2024
Friends                                                      0-4              2016, 2019
Grand View                                               2-4              2015, 2018
Hastings                                                    0-2              2013
Kansas Wesleyan                                   0-4              2014, 2017
MidAmerica Nazarene                            1-2              2014
Midland                                                     5-3              2021, 2023            1 (2023)
Missouri Baptist                                       2-2              2025
Morningside                                              3-4              2019, 2025
Mount Mercy                                             1-2              2023
Oklahoma City                                         35-8            2013-25                 9 (2013-14, 2016-19, 2022, 2024-25)
Olivet Nazarene                                       2-2              2019
Ottawa (Kan.)                                           5-2              2021, 2024            1 (2021)
Simpson                                                    2-2              2017
Spring Hill                                                 2-2              2014
Tabor                                                          1-2              2018
Texas A&M-San Antonio                         0-2              2023
Texas A&M-Texarkana                            1-2              2022
Victoria (Texas A&M and Houston)       3-6              2016, 2024-25
William Carey                                           1-2              2025
William Woods                                         0-2              2022
 
All-Time OCU Bracket Results
2013
Bellevue 3, Freed Hardeman 2
Oklahoma City 6, Hastings 1
Oklahoma City 7, Bellevue 2
Freed Hardeman 9, Hastings 2
Bellevue 9, Freed Hardeman 2
Bellevue 5, Oklahoma City 4 (13)
Oklahoma City 9, Bellevue 0
2014
Oklahoma City 8, Kansas Wesleyan 0
Spring Hill 2, MidAmerica Nazarene 1
Oklahoma City 1, Spring Hill 0
MidAmerica Nazarene 7, Kansas Wesleyan 1
Spring Hill 6, MidAmerica Nazarene 0
Oklahoma City 4, Spring Hill 0
2015
Concordia (Ore.) 8, Grand View 5 (9)
Oklahoma City 13, Concordia (Neb.) 0
Concordia (Ore.) 3, Oklahoma City 1
Concordia (Neb.) 6, Grand View 4
Oklahoma City 9, Concordia (Neb.) 2
Oklahoma City 9, Concordia (Ore.) 2
Concordia (Ore.) 7, Oklahoma City 5
2016
Houston-Victoria 5, Friends 1
Oklahoma City 2, Doane 1
Oklahoma City 5, Houston-Victoria 3
Doane 1, Friends 0
Houston-Victoria 1, Doane 0
Oklahoma City 10, Houston-Victoria 2
2017
Bellevue 2, Simpson 1
Oklahoma City 9, Kansas Wesleyan 0
Oklahoma City 8, Bellevue 0
Simpson 11, Kansas Wesleyan 2
Simpson 7, Bellevue 0
Oklahoma City 4, Simpson 1
2018
Grand View 4, Tabor 0
Oklahoma City 4, Eastern Oregon 0
Oklahoma City 3, Grand View 0
Tabor 1, Eastern Oregon 0
Grand View 13, Tabor 0
Oklahoma City 3, Grand View 0
2019
Olivet Nazarene 4, Morningside 2
Oklahoma City 9, Friends 0
Oklahoma City 8, Olivet Nazarene 3
Morningside 4, Friends 0
Olivet Nazarene 5, Morningside 0
Oklahoma City 16, Olivet Nazarene 2
2020 – Covid
2021
Ottawa (Kan.) 11, Midland 9
Oklahoma City 2, Dickinson State 0
Ottawa (Kan.) 3, Oklahoma City 1
Midland 4, Dickinson State 2
Midland 7, Oklahoma City 3
Ottawa (Kan.) 11, Midland 1
2022
Texas A&M-Texarkana 5, Eastern Oregon 3
Oklahoma City 4, William Woods 1
Oklahoma City 6, Texas A&M-Texarkana 0
Eastern Oregon 8, William Woods 4
Eastern Oregon 6, Texas A&M-Texarkana 0
Oklahoma City 6, Eastern Oregon 1
2023
Midland 2, Mount Mercy 1
Oklahoma City 11, Texas A&M-San Antonio 2
Midland 2, Oklahoma City 1
Mount Mercy 4, Texas A&M-San Antonio 0
Oklahoma City 5, Mount Mercy 2
Oklahoma City 3, Midland 1
Midland 2, Oklahoma City 1
2024
Oklahoma City 6, Ottawa (Kan.) 0
Houston-Victoria 4, Freed Hardeman 0
Ottawa (Kan.) 2, Freed Hardeman 1
Oklahoma City 5, Houston-Victoria 0
Ottawa (Kan. 3), Houston-Victoria 2
Oklahoma City 11, Ottawa (Kan.) 1
2025
Morningside 2, Houston-Victoria 1
Missouri Baptist 8, William Carey 2
Oklahoma City 5, Morningside 0
William Carey 7, Houston-Victoria 1
Missouri Baptist 5, Oklahoma City 3
Morningside 4, William Carey 3
Oklahoma City 11, Morningside 1
Oklahoma City 6, Missouri Baptist 5
Oklahoma City 4, Missouri Baptist 3 (8)