BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University softball team has been announced as the No. 4 seed for the NCAA Division II Softball Championships in the West Regional that will take place May 19-22 in Irvine, California.
 
WWU completed the regular season with a 23-12 overall record and received an automatic bid to the 48-team NCAA Championships by winning the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships with a perfect 3-0 record.
 
The six-team West Regional will be played at Eagles Field on the campus of No. 1 seed Concordia University Irvine. Play begins Wednesday with three games, including the Vikings taking on No. 5 seed Hawai'i Hilo in the first game of the regional at noon.
 
Games will also be played Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the four-day, double-elimination tournament format. No. 1 seed and tournament host Concordia Irvine and No. 2 seed Biola receive a first-round bye, with No. 3 seed Northwest Nazarene and No. 6 seed Central Washington also playing Wednesday. The winner of each of the eight regionals across the country will qualify to play for the national championship May 27-31 in Denver, Colorado.
 
Western is making its fifth appearance in the NCAA II Championships and second in the last four complete seasons. The Vikings also competed in the West Regional in 2003, 2007, 2011 and most recently in 2017. Additionally, Western won the 1998 NAIA national title in its final season before joining the NCAA ranks.
 
The Vikings are led by the a pitching staff that has recorded a 2.31 team ERA to lead the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and rank No. 4 in the West Region. Senior ace Anna Kasner is 13-3 with a 1.62 ERA (26 ER, 112.1 IP) and has struck out 153 batters. The WWU and GNAC all-time strikeout leader went 3-0 during the GNAC Tournament, totaling 38 strikeouts while allowing only one run.
 
WWU is led at the plate by junior shortstop Tatum Dow, who is batting .449 (48-for-107) with 26 runs scored, 7 doubles, 6 home runs and 26 RBI. As a team the Vikings are batting .318 and are averaging over five runs per game.
 
The Vikings are led by third-year head coach Sheryl Gilmore, who has guided the Vikings to a 60-42 overall record for a .588 winning percentage.
  The West Regional field features six teams that will compete in a double-elimination tournament at Eagle Field in Irvine, California. Here is a look at the six teams and their overall records from the 2021 season:
 

• #1 Concordia Irvine (30-11)
• #2 Biola (19-13)
• #3 Northwest Nazarene (30-12)
• #4 Western Washington (23-12)
• #5 Hawai'i Hilo (17-11)
• #6 Central Washington (17-14)

  Here is a look at the regional bracket and game schedule for the 2021 NCAA II West Regional Softball Tournament:
 
 2021NCAA DIVISION II WEST REGIONAL
at Eagle Field, Irvine, California
 
Wednesday, May 19
Game 1: No. 4 Western Washington vs. No. 5 Hawaii Hilo, Noon
Game 2: No. 3 Northwest Nazarene vs. No. 6 Central Washington, 2:30 p.m.
Game 3: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 (Elimination Game), 5 p.m.
 
Thursday, May 20
Game 4: Winner Game 1 vs. No. 1 Concordia Irvine, 12:00 pm
Game 5: Winner Game 2 vs. No. 2 Biola, 2:30 pm
Game 6: Loser Game 4 vs. Loser Game 5 (Elimination Game), 5:00 pm
 
Friday, May 21
Game 7: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5, 12:00 pm
Game 8: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 6 (Elimination Game), 2:30 pm
Game 9: Loser Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8 (Elimination Game), 5:00 pm
 
Saturday, May 22
Game 10: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 9, 12:00 pm
Game 11: Winner Game 10 vs. Loser Game 10 (if necessary), 2:30 pm
  More information on a live webcast, fan information for games in Irvine and live statistical updates will be provided in the coming days. All information will be posted at WWUVikings.com/Softball.
  The No. 4 seed Vikings will face No. 5 Hawai'i Hilo (17-11) on Wednesday in Irvine, California at noon to open West Regional play. WWU is 7-9 all-time vs. the Vulcans, but have won three of the last four in the series, which includes a 10-0 win in the last meeting Feb. 7, 2020 in St. George, Utah. The younger sister of WWU pitching coach Shearyna Labasan – Kamalei – is a junior outfielder for UHH.
  Up-to-date season information, including season statistics, bios, roster, schedule and historical information can be viewed online at WWUVikings.com/Softball. WWU Softball also has a strong social media presence on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, so give them a follow!
  The WWU softball program is in its 29^th season in 2021, with the Vikings posting a winning record 18 times. WWU won the 1998 NAIA National Championship in only its sixth season to record the school's first ever team national title and has now made five trips to the NCAA Division II Regional Championships. Over the last six seasons (since 2014), the Vikings are 195-146 and have won two of the last four GNAC Tournament titles (2017 & 2019). Head coach Sheryl Gilmore is in her third season at the helm of the program in 2020 after leading WWU to 27 wins, tied for the 10^th-most in program history, in her first campaign in 2019 and a 60-42 overall record (.588).