Western Washington University Athletics

HAYWARD, Calif. – The Western Washington University softball team opened NCAA West Regional play with an 3-2 victory over No. 2 seed and regional host Cal State East Bay Thursday afternoon at Pioneer Softball Field.

 

Less than a week after rattling off three consecutive wins in the elimination bracket to win their third consecutive GNAC Championships title, the Vikings their gritty nature coming from behind to defeat the No. 13 nationally-ranked Pioneers. WWU trailed 2-0 after the bottom of the first inning, scoring three unanswered runs over the remainder of the game to earn the victory advancing to the winner's bracket of the four-team sub-regional.

 

WWU is back in action in a winner's bracket game Friday morning at 10 am facing No. 6 seed Biola, a 5-4 winner over No. 3 seed Concordia Irvine in the second game on Thursday. All NCAA Division II Softball Championships games stream live (and free) online via the NCAA Champs Pass. The Vikings are the two-time defending West Regional champion.

 

Trailing 2-0, junior All-American third baseman Maleah Andrews got the Viking bats warmed up with a solo, no-doubt home run to right-center field in the top of the 3rd inning. With freshman pitcher Alanna Wirtala settled down and in cruise control, WWU pushed across the game-tying run in the top of the 5th inning on a fielding error by the East Bay second baseman.

 

With the game tied 2-2, junior left fielder Rachel Traxler led off the top of the 7th inning with a single up the middle and moved into scoring position on a walk by Andrews. Sophomore second baseman Haylee Kim moved both runners up with a perfectly-executed sacrifice bunt and senior shortstop Hailey Rath plated the go-ahead run with sacrifice fly to left field to score Traxler.

 

Wirtala worked out of a bases loaded jam in the bottom of the 4th inning and stranded runners on base in the 5th, 6th and 7th innings to earn her 28th victory of the season. The GNAC Freshman of the Year scattered nine hits and two runs (both in the 1st inning) in the complete-game effort.

 

Andrews went 1-for-2 with a pair of walks while hitting her 13th home run of the season. Senior first baseman Olivia Matlock (2-for-3) and junior center fielder Laila Carpenter (2-for-3) both recorded multi-hit games.

 

WWU improved to 35-20 on the season with their fourth consecutive victory and third straight win at Pioneer Field. 

 

The Vikings defeated CCAA Pitcher of the Year Marissa Quintero (27-8), who no-hit the Vikings earlier this season. 
 

 

The Vikings (35-20) advance to the winner's bracket and will play No. 6 seed Biola in the 10 am game on Friday at Pioneer Softball Field. No. 2 seed and No. 3 Concordia Irvine will meet in an elimination game at 12:30 pm. The complete 2026 schedule can be viewed online at wwuvikings.com/Team34with links to season statistics, photo galleries and program history.

 

WWU is playing in the Hayward pod of the 2026 NCAA II West Regional Championship, with four teams competing for a spot in the super regional at Pioneer Softball Field on the Cal State East Bay campus. This marks the Vikings second consecutive trip to Cal State East Bay in regional play, knocking off the No. 1 seed Pioneers on the way to a Super Regional victory at Cal State San Marcos. Here is a look at the Hayward bracket with game times listed. The other side of the West Region bracket will be played on the campus of No. 1 seed Cal State San Marcos. The winner of each sub-regional advances to the West Super Regional played May 21-22 (best of 3), with the winner advancing to the NCAA II Championship Finals May 28-June 3 in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

 

 

Thursday, May 14:

Game 1 –No. 7 Western Washington 3, No. 2 Cal State East Bay 2

Game 2 – No. 6 Biola 5, No. 3 Concordia Irvine 4

 

Friday, May 15:

Game 3 – No. 7 Western Washington vs. No. 6 Biola, 10:00 am

Game 4 – No. 2 Cal State East Bay vs. No. 3 Concordia Irvine, 12:30 pm (elimination game)

Game 5 – Loser Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 3:00 pm (elimination game)

 

Saturday, May 16:

Game 6 – Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5, 12:00 pm

Game 7 – Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6, 2:30 pm (if necessary)

 

WWU is making its eighth appearance in the NCAA Division II Softball Championships and third consecutive with back-to-back appearances in the D2 World Series in 2024 (Longwood, FL) and 2025 (Chattanooga, TN). Entering the 2024 postseason with one NCAA Tournament victory, the Vikings went 10-5 during the run to the national championship series last year and reached the semifinal round (Final Four) in 2025. Prior to moving to the NCAA level in 1999, WWU won the NAIA World Series in 1998 for the first team national championship in WWU Athletics history. Here is a look at the Vikings game-by-game listing in the NCAA Championships with the regional host site listed next to the year. The Vikings are 19-18 all-time in NCAA Tournament play, with 18 of the 19 wins over the last three seasons. WWU is two-time defending West Regional Champion:

 

2003 (Bakersfield, CA):

Lost to UC Davis, 4-2

Lost to Humboldt State, 7-1

 

2007 (Turlock, CA):

Lost to Stanislaus State, 2-0

Lost to Sonoma State, 3-1

 

2011 (Chico, CA):

Lost to Chico State, 3-1

Lost to Central Washington, 8-4

 

2017 (Seaside, CA):

Defeated Cal State Monterey Bay, 5-3

Lost to Dixie State, 5-0

Lost to Sonoma State, 6-4

 

2021 (Irvine, CA):

Lost to Hawai'i Hilo, 3-0

Lost to Central Washington, 9-5

 

2024 (Bellingham, WA):

Defeated Azusa Pacific, 1-0

Lost to Cal State San Marcos, 4-3

Defeated Azusa Pacific, 3-0

Defeated Cal State San Marcos, 7-1

Defeated Cal State San Marcos, 2-1

Defeated Cal State Dominguez Hills, 4-3 (Super Regional)

Lost to Cal State Dominguez Hills, 3-2 (Super Regional)

Defeated Cal State Dominguez Hills, 7-6 (West Region Champions) – 8 innings

Defeated Wilmington (DE), 2-1 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Longwood, FL

Lost to UT Tyler, 10-1 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Longwood, FL

Defeated Auburn Montgomery, 7-1 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Longwood, FL

Defeated UIndy, 2-1 (9 inn.) (NCAA Championship Finals) – Longwood, FL

Defeated UIndy, 7-0 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Longwood, FL

Lost to UT Tyler, 3-0 (NCAA Championship Series) – Longwood, FL

Lost to UT Tyler, 10-1 (NCAA Championship Series) – Longwood, FL

 

2025 (Hayward, CA):

Defeated Concordia Irvine, 8-0

Defeated Cal State East Bay, 2-1

Defeated Cal State East Bay, 6-2

Lost to Cal State San Marcos, 9-1 (Super Regional)

Defeated Cal State San Marcos, 4-1 (Super Regional)

Defeated Cal State San Marcos, 3-2 (Super Regional)

Lost to UT Tyler, 6-5 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Chattanooga, TN

Defeated North Georgia, 3-0 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Chattanooga, TN

Defeated Central Oklahoma, 3-2 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Chattanooga, TN

Lost to UT Tyler, 2-0 (NCAA Championship Finals) – Chattanooga, TN

 

2026 (Hayward, CA):

Defeated Cal State East Bay, 3-2
 

 

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2026 season:

 

 

The WWU softball is in its 34th season in 2026 while coming off a historic 47-13 season in 2025. The Vikings claimed their third consecutive GNAC tournament title in 2026 after finishing second during the regular season. WWU has made back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Division II World Series and made eight all-time appearances in the NCAA West Regional Championships. WWU won its second consecutive West Regional title in 2025 defeating Cal State East Bay in the sub-regional and Cal State San Marcos in the Super Regional. The historic season ended playing in the D2 World Series in Chattanooga, Tennessee, reaching the semifinal round (Final Four). WWU has posted a winning record 23 times during the 34-year history of the program, which won the 1998 NAIA National Championship in only its sixth season to record the school's first ever team national title. Over the last three seasons the program has combined to go 134-45 (.749).