The Braves fell 6-0 to no. 2 Oklahoma City University in their first game of the NAIA Open Round - Oklahoma City Bracket. Ottawa was 5-for-22 at the plate (.227), had a .227 slugging percentage, and a .292 on base percentage. OCU hit .308 (8-for-26), had a .500 slugging percentage, and a .367 on base percentage.
This is OU's sixth trip to the NAIA Opening Round and it is the second straight season that OU will play Freed-Hardeman University in an elimination game. The Braves and Lions played against each other last season in Henderson, Tenn. in the NAIA Opening Round - Henderson Bracket. The Lions defeated OU 5-4 in the Braves first game of the tournament on May 15, 2023 and 2-0 in an elimination game on May 17, 2023. Ottawa has a record of 0-2 all-time against Freed-Hardeman.
Ottawa has a record of 8-7 in opening round games. The Braves have won two NAIA Opening Round brackets with victories in 2017 and 2021.
Through 55 games this season, Ottawa has a .316 batting average, a .388 on base percentage, and a .466 slugging percentage. OU has hit 30 home runs and scored 351 runs.
Addison Spencer leads OU with a .375 batting average and
Reagan Hammons is OU's leader in RBI (58).
Ashlynn Mercer leads the Braves in ERA (1.83) and strike outs (93).
The Brave are ranked fourth in the NAIA in at bats (1,491), eighth in runs (351), 14th in hits (471), 11th in doubles (94), fifth in triples (20), 27th in home runs (30), eighth in RBI (319), 10th in extra base hits (144), 13th in total bases (695), 12th in walks (160), 47th in batting average (.316), 41st in on base percentage (.388), 30th in slugging percentage (.466), 31st in ERA (2.40), 33rd in WHIP (1.24), 25th in shut outs (12), and 14th in at bats against (1,386).
Freed-Hardeman University has an overall record of 31-17 and a Mid-South Conference mark of 15-9. FHU had its seven game winning streak snapped on Monday afternoon, falling to Houston-Victoria University 4-0 in its first game of the NAIA Opening Round - Oklahoma City Bracket. The Lions are receiving votes in the NAIA Softball Coaches Top 25 Poll.
For the second time in three years, Freed-Hardeman won the Mid-South Conference Championship. The Lions defeated University of the Cumberlands, 5-2, in the tournament championship game.
The Lions had six named to the All-Mid-South Conference Teams. Brittany Adair, Brinley Cousar, and Alivia Eggleston, Natalie Gilmore, and Karli Quillin were named First Team. Chloe Carter was named Second Team All-Mid South. Gilmore (OF) and Quillin (OF) were named to the Gold Glove Team.
Through 48 games this season, the Lions are hitting .331, have a .384 on base percentage, and a .412 slugging percentage. The Lions have hit 13 home runs and scored 245 runs.
Freed-Hardeman is led in batting average (.454) by Karli Quillin and Alivia Eggleston is FHU's leader in RBI (41). Chloe Winters leads the team in ERA (2.17) and is tied in appearances with Kylee Brown with 22. Winter is the Lions' leader in strike outs (85).
The Lions are ranked 23rd in the NAIA in at bats (1,407), 17th in hits (466), 43rd in total bases (579), 22nd in sacrifice flies (17), 23rd in batting average (.331), 46th in on base percentage (.384), 31st in shut outs (11), and 39th in opponent batting average (.249).
