By Adam Stanek
The top-seeded MACU softball team won its first-ever NCCAA National Championship with a walk-off 3-2 victory over Concordia Ann Arbor (Mich.) in the NCCAA World Series Championship Game on Thursday, May 20.
With the score tied in the bottom of the eighth, sophomore first baseman Olivia Roberts made the game-winning hit that propelled the Evangels to victory and MACU athletics history.
“That was the most memorable game I ever played in my life,” Roberts said after the game. “The energy we had coming into the national tournament was unmatched. We picked each other up as a team. We have accomplished so much together and it is an honor to be a part of the MACU program.”
At the conclusion of the game, MACU was awarded the championship plaque and banner while three members of the MACU softball team were named to the NCCAA All-Tournament Team.
Roberts was named the NCCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. She and both starting pitchers, Katie Long and Regan Martin, were also named to the all-tournament squad.
“This is what we’ve worked for all season long,” said Head Coach Robert Wakefield. “I’m so proud of this team and everything we’ve accomplished this season. This group of young ladies represented MACU fantastically all week. This has been a special season with a special ending.”
The trip was MACU’s third to the NCCAA World Series. Not only was the championship win a first for the university, but for the Sooner Athletic Conference: the Evangels became the first SAC team to win the championship since it began in 1992.
“We could not be more proud of what our softball team accomplished this year!” said Athletic Director Marcus Moeller.
“The young women in the program are incredible representatives of our university in the classroom, the community and on the field.”
MACU had a dominant run in the tournament, pitching three complete game shutouts and outscoring the opposition 26-2 for the entire three-day, four-game event. Overall, the Evangels closed out the 2021 season with its most successful year in program history, finishing with a 37-14 overall record and its highest-ever winning percentage in SAC play.