UTICA, N.Y. - The SUNY Poly softball team will host the 2023 North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championship Tournament from Sunday, May 7th to Tuesday, May 9th. The Wildcats earned the #1 seed in the West Division with an 11-1 conference record. Cazenovia earned the #2 seed in the West and Cobleskill earned the #3 seed. In the East, Husson went a perfect 10-0 to earn the #1 seed. Thomas earned the #2 and UMPI earned the #3. With the Championship Tournament set to be played in the West, the Wildcats will host the six-team double-elimination tournament over a three-day period.
The tournament format calls for a re-seed based on a number of factors including winning percentage and strength of schedule. After the re-seed, the teams rank as follows:
Championship Re-Seed
#1 Husson University
#2 SUNY Poly
#3 Thomas College
#4 Cazenovia College
#5 UMaine-Presque Isle
#6 SUNY Cobleskill
The Championship Tournament will open up on Sunday, May 7th at 10:00 AM.
The schedule is as follows:
| 2023 Championship Tournament Schedule | |
| Sunday, May 7 | Game Time (tentative) |
| Game 1: #4 Cazenovia vs. #5 UMaine-Presque Isle | 10 AM |
| Game 2: #3 Thomas vs. #6 SUNY Cobleskill | 12 PM |
| Game 3: #1 Husson vs. Game 1 Winner | 2 PM |
| Game 4: #2 SUNY Poly vs. Game 2 Winner | 4 PM |
| Monday, May 8 | |
| Game 5: Game 2 Loser vs. Game 3 Loser | 9 AM |
| Game 6: Game 1 Loser vs. Game 4 Loser | 11 AM |
| Game 7: Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner | 1 PM |
| Game 8: Game 5 Winner vs. Game 6 Winner | 3 PM |
| Game 9: Game 8 Winner vs. Game 7 Loser | 5 PM |
| Tuesday, May 9 | |
| Game 10: Game 7 Winner vs. Game 9 Winner | 1 PM |
| Game 11: Game 10 Winner vs. Game 10 Loser (if nec.) | 3 PM |
In the first round, the Wildcats will take on either the Thomas College Terriers or the Cobleskill Fighting Tigers.
The Wildcats have not faced Thomas this season. The Terriers will enter the tournament as the #3 seed with a record of 14-13 and a 7-3 record in NAC play. They are led offensively by Makayla Panich who has a .356 batting average in 59 at-bats. Maddie Rock and Kelsey Currier hit .349 and .342 this season respectively. Megan Oberholzer led the Terriers with 26 RBI. Currier and Oberholzer are the pitchers for Thomas. Currier went 8-6 with an ERA of 3.25 in 88.1 innings pitched. Oberholzer went 5-5 with a 3.83 ERA in 60.1 innings pitched.
The Wildcats swept the Cobleskill Fighting Tigers in a three-game set. The #6 seed went 11-23 this season with a 6-6 record in NAC play. They have two offensive players with a batting average better than .400. Mackenzie Wendelkin is currently second in the NAC with a .486 average and a slugging percentage of .632. Alexis Miranda is batting .465 for the Fighting Tigers this season with a .772 slugging percentage and a team-high four home runs. Marissa Wheeler is the #1 starting pitcher for the Tigers. She went 7-9 this season with a 4.50 ERA and 12 complete games.
This season has been a great one for the Wildcats. They have a record of 20-5 with an 11-1 NAC record. They finished the season winning 15 of their last 16 games. Trinity Critelli has been dominant on the mound for the Wildcats. She has a 15-2 record, a 1.79 ERA, and 16 complete games. She broke her own single-season strikeouts record for the second consecutive season with 176. She has also thrown three no-hitters and 14 complete games.
Kimberly Birmingham was the Wildcat's offensive leader this season. She has a .456 average and a .772 slugging percentage with a team-high 32 RBI, six doubles, five triples, and three home runs. Amy DeSena and Aeron Hamm both hit .412 with 33 hits in 80 at-bats this season. They both also drove in 28 runs. Hamm hit three homeruns, DeSena hit one.
The Wildcats got great production from their entire lineup, top to bottom. Senior Gabriella Ellixson hit a career-high .382 this season with 30 runs scored and 11 RBI. Freshman Ava Faragon and Kelley Powell hit .376 and .366 respectively with 16 and 18 RBI. Senior Maddelyn Hoehn also scored 30 times this season at the top of the order, hitting .325 with a .438 slugging percentage. Senior Gabriella Ellixson hit a career-high .382 this season with 30 runs scored and 11 RBI. Senior Maddelyn Hoehn also scored 30 times this season at the top of the order, hitting .325 with a .438 slugging percentage.
The Wildcats will stream every game of the NAC Championship live on the SUNY Poly Sports Network (SPSN)