Kansas City, MO - In what proved to be a record-breaking season for the Oakland City University softball program, the Oaks continued their firm grip on the National Christian College Athletic Association Mideast Region, taking their third consecutive Regional Championship on their way to falling one game short of advancing to the semifinals of the NCCAA World Series, held in Kansas City, Missouri.
Entering as the tournament's fourth seed, OCU dropped their opening game, 4-1, against the fifth-seeded Trolls of Trinity Christian College. The Oaks rebounded to hold off eight-seed Kansas Christian College, 5-1, in game two, before coming up one run short in a 6-5 nail biter against top-ranked Mid-America Christian University.
The Oaks finished the season with a record of 25-21. With their victory in the NCCAA World Series over KCC, the Mighty Oaks set a new record for the most wins in program history, eclipsing the 24-25 mark from 2000.
McKendree Ward (Graduate student, Newburgh, IN/Castle HS) was named to the all-tournament team for the second year in a row, while also earning second-team All-America honors.
Megan Ghrist (Senior, Mt. Vernon, IN/Mt. Vernon HS) also was named a second-team All-American, giving the Oaks their first players on the All-American teams since Lauren Morton earned second-team honors in 2017.
Earning All-Region Team honors were Ward, Ghrist,
Abbi Jaquess (Senior, Newburgh, IN/Castle HS), and
Emily Fitzwater (Sophomore, Covington, IN/North Vermillion HS), while Head Coach
Patti Buchta was named NCCAA Mid-East Coach of the Year in her 31st season at the helm of the OCU squad.
Ghrist, Gabbi Gilpin (Senior, Evansville, IN/Mt. Vernon HS),
Jessi Goforth (Junior, Princeton, IN/Greenville University),
Hailee Hope (Senior, Henderson, KY/Frontier CC), Jaquess,
Ashton Steinbrenner (Senior, Newport, IN/North Vermillion HS),
Khloye Strickland (Junior, Mackey, IN/Wood Memorial HS), and Ward were all named to the Scholar-Athlete Award list, helping the Oaks earn the Scholar-Team Award with a combined 3.43 grade point average.
With such a strong graduating class, the Oaks will look to reload for another strong run next season, as
Gabi Gilpin (Outfield),
Abbi Jaquess (Outfield),
Hailee Hope (Pitcher),
Ashton Steinbrenner (Pitcher),
Madison Marlow (Pitcher),
Megan Ghrist (Catcher/First Base), and
McKendree Ward (Third Base), all leave their marks on the OCU softball program. However, many returning players, and a strong recruiting class, should leave the Oaks in position to continue their success.
