Hutchinson CC Sports Information
Eight days after earning their first regional championship in 37 years, the Hutchinson Community College softball team learned its seed and opening-round opponent on Tuesday afternoon.
The Region 6 champion Blue Dragons earned the No. 15 overall seed in the 20-team double-elimination tournament and will play No. 19 seed and Region 2 champion Connors State.
The opening-round game will be played on Field 4 at 1 p.m. on Monday, May 20 at Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Alabama. The Hutchinson/Connors State winner will play No. 2-seed Indian River State at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21. The loser will play at 3 p.m. on Tuesday against the McLennan/Lake Land-Iowa Western loser.
BLUE DRAGON SOFTBALL
No. 15 Hutchinson (46-10) vs. No. 19 Connors State (39-12)
NJCAA Division I National Tournament Opening Round
When: Monday, May 20, 2024
At: Field 4, Choccolocco Park, Oxford, AL
Time: 1 p.m.
Video: NJCAA TV (Pay-per-view)
The Blue Dragons won the Region VI title on May 6 in Dodge City, defeating the reigning regional champion Butler Grizzlies twice in the championship game 12-3 and 16-4 to win the program's second overall regional championship and first since 1987, the second year of the program.
The 2024 Blue Dragons set a record for wins in a season with a 46-10 record. The Dragons have won
Hutchinson ranks fourth in the NJCAA in team batting average at .417 and sixth in total runs scored with 566. The Blue Dragons also rank in the national Top 20 in pitching earned-run average at 2.78.
Jayhawk Conference Freshman of the Year Dakota Lake ranks 12th in the NJCAA with 200 strikeouts and is sixth in the nation in strikeouts per seven innings at 11.32.
Offensively, sophomore Jaeleigh Darnell is eighth in the nation in batting average at .515. Freshman Bailey Backhaus is 19th at .496 and is second in the nation in total hits with 102.
Connors State is 39-12 and defeated Eastern Oklahoma State in the second Region 2 championship game 7-2 to earn a berth in the tournament. The Cowgirls knocked off Region 2 favorite Seminole State 4-3 in the semifinals.
Connors State has a team batting average of .337 with 357 runs scored this season. The Cowgirls have hit 49 home runs. The pitching staff has a team ERA of 3.02.
McLennan College is the No. 1 overall seed for this year's tournament. Indian River State is No. 2, followed by Northwest Florida State, defending national champion Florida Southwestern State and Temple College.
The Blue Dragons have won 13 of their last 14 and 26 of their last 29 games played.