Columbia, Mo. - The NAIA Softball National Championship Opening Round will kick off on Monday, May 12^th and the Cougar Softball team will be the No. 3 seed in the Columbia bracket, one of ten opening round sites. LSU-Alexandria (La.) will be the No. 1 seed in the bracket along with No. 2 seed Central Methodist (Mo.) University and No. 4 seed Morningside (Iowa) College.
 
LSU-Alexandria (32-3) earned an automatic bid to the national championships as the Association of Independent Institutions Tournament Champion. The Lady Generals are ranked second in the latest release of the NAIA Softball Coaches' Top 25 Poll and have won 11 straight games dating back to March 14^th. LSUA boasts six players hitting over .400 on the season, led by junior Brooke Thomas at .457. Fellow junior Taylor Simon leads the club in home runs (5) and RBI (36), while Logan Hebert and Kaycee Spears have combined for 26 wins in the pitching circle. The Lady Generals are coached by Charlie Zeilman, who is in his third year with the program.
 
No. 2 seed Central Methodist (41-6) won the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) regular season and postseason tournament championships in 2014 as they earned their third consecutive trip to the national championships. The Eagles enter play winners of nine straight contests and ranked 14^th in the NAIA, led by four-time HAAC Pitcher of the Year Aubrey Utley (24-1, 1.33 ERA) and Player of the Year Michele Rupard (.408 BA, 7 HR, 28 RBI). As a team, CMU has belted 48 home runs on the season and ranks 12^th nationally in home runs per game (1.02). Head Coach Pat Reardon is in his 22^nd season with the Eagles and was named the 2014 HAAC Coach of the Year.
 
Third seed Columbia (30-16) will be the host school after a runner-up finish in the American Midwest Conference (AMC) regular season and postseason tournament. The Cougars will bring one of the more potent offenses to the tournament, ranking 13^th nationally in runs per game (7.2), 19^th in slugging percentage (.511), and 21^st in batting average (.341). Senior Jamie Holmes was named the AMC Player of the Year and leads the squad with a .416 batting average to go along with five home runs and 31 RBI. Fellow senior Marli Hayes is hitting .376 with a team-leading 44 RBI and Brittiany Tjarks has connected on a team-high seven home runs. Columbia Head Coach Wendy Spratt is making her 11^th career appearance at the national championships and also picked up her 700^th career win with the Cougars earlier this year.
 
The Morningside Mustangs (30-12) were the regular season champions of the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) and also captured the postseason tournament championship for the fifth straight year. Morningside is making their sixth consecutive appearance at the national championships under head coach Jessica Jones-Sitzmann. As a team, the Mustangs rank tenth in the NAIA in home runs per game, led by GPAC Player of the Year Kati Steffen (.408 BA, 12 HR, 42 RBI). Senior Jordan Johnson was the Conference's Pitcher of the Year after posting a record of 21-6 and a 2.39 ERA in addition to hitting .357 with six home runs at the plate.    
 
Columbia and Central Methodist will play the first game on Monday, May 12th starting at noon, followed by LSU-Alexandria and Morningside at approximately 2:30 pm. All six bracket games (seven if necessary) will be played at Antimi Black Softball Field in Columbia. The Columbia bracket winner will advance to the 34^th annual NAIA Softball World Series, which will be held May 23^rd - 29^th at South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Georgia. 
 
The 2014 NAIA Softball National Championships Banquet of Champions will take place at 6:15 p.m. on Sunday, May 11^th at the Dulany Hall Banquet Room on the Columbia College campus. Fans can visit the Opening Round Tournament page for additional information.