Raiders survive seven consecutive elimination games to capture the latest title, a feat no team in the World Series’ 44-year history had previously pulled off

COLUMBUS, Ga. — The names, levels of dominance, and routes to the trophy have changed during a once-implausible run of four championships in six years, but one thing has not at the NAIA Softball World Series: Southern Oregon is inevitable.

One week removed from a tournament-opening loss, the Raiders completed a historic uphill trek to the top with a 6-3 win against Oklahoma City in Thursday morning’s winner-take-all finale at the South Commons Complex. They survived seven consecutive elimination games to capture the latest title, a feat no team in the World Series’ 44-year history had previously pulled off.

That degree of difficulty was matched by the improbability of the clincher’s decisive swing, unleashed in the bottom of the first inning by second baseman Vanessa Lang for a three-run home run that went as her first of the season and gave the Raiders a lead they never relinquished.

“Just the love on this team is apparent, and these players were ready to get in there and do it for the person next to them,” SOU 10th-year coach Jessica Pistole said. “I feel like it was a different person every day that had a clutch hit.”

Pistole brought the Raiders (55-9 overall) to their first World Series in 2017. Since that run began, they’ve won 30 of 34 national tournament elimination games. They now own the second-most championships in NAIA history and have clinched two against OCU, which remained stuck on 11 titles.

Lang’s shot, which hooked inside the left-field foul pole, rejuvenated the Raiders after they watched OCU (53-11) sluggers Tara Hoehner and Analise Rayburn crank back-to-back solo home runs in the top of the first. They loaded the bases on an error and consecutive walks, pushing their first run across with Sammie Pemberton’s sacrifice fly before Lang made the score 4-2.

Ayla Davies, the World Series MVP, then settled in amid a steady downpour for her eighth straight complete game of the trip. The freshman workhorse from Burns – who in Wednesday’s 6-0 win that forced the rematch became the first pitcher in a span of 210 games to shut out OCU – initially lacked the sharpness she possessed throughout the 21-inning scoreless streak that she brought into the day. But, after surrendering back-to-back doubles in the third inning, she retired 15 of the final 17 Stars she faced and finished with seven strikeouts in a six-hitter.

Davies established a new World Series record for strikeouts with 71 across 61 innings pitched. She also completed her debut season as the winningest pitcher in SOU single-season history at 38-5 with a 1.20 ERA. The right-hander registered a 1.26 ERA and threw three shutouts at the tournament.

“I’m feeling so grateful for the chance to be here with my team,” Davies said, “and, honestly, I’m grateful we got to play every single game possible to get here.”

Added Pistole: “Obviously Ayla is just amazing in the circle. Everybody loves her and the toughness showed all week.”

Kennedy Kila – who was Tuesday’s hero with a tiebreaking home run against Georgia Gwinnett – supplied some breathing room for Davies in the sixth with a two-run double, reaching base for the third time following singles from Brooke Nordahl and Faith Moultrie.

Kila also retrieved the final out in the seventh. With one runner on base, she caught a foul popup between first and home plate to leave the potential tying run in the on-deck circle.

Nordahl and Sarah Kerling joined Davies on the All-Tournament team. Nordahl, a sophomore third baseman, went 9-for-21 with four runs scored and played errorless defense in Georgia. Kerling, the four-year starting center fielder who was also selected to the 2023 All-Tournament team, finished 15-for-33 with two doubles, eight RBIs and five runs scored. She delivered the walk-off hit in SOU’s third elimination-game victory, a 7-6, nine-inning affair against Marian (Ind.) on Monday.

Of the 20 players on SOU’s postseason roster, six were active during the 2023 title run when the Raiders outscored their opponents 35-2 combined. That year, they needed to play just 23 innings at the final site; this year, after being left for dead early, they got through 61.

Notes:

• SOU, seeded No. 3 at the tournament, went through each of the other top-four seeds during the run. Oklahoma City was the No. 4 seed and reached the championship round by outscoring its first three opponents 24-1 combined.
• The Raiders also clinched their first championship against the Stars in 2019, when OCU forced a winner-take-all game. No team had come out of the elimination bracket to claim the title since they did it in 2021, when they won five consecutive elimination contests.
• Following the tournament-opening loss to Marian, SOU never trailed at the end of a full inning.
• Only one other team has celebrated four championships within a six-year period: Oklahoma City, which won four in a row from 1994-97.
• Davies totaled 297 innings pitched on the season, 45 more than any player in team history. She topped the NAIA with 312 strikeouts and had eight more wins than any other player in the country.
• The Raiders matched the single-season team record for wins in a season, originally established by their 55-6 squad in 2021.