NAIA baseball, softball regional tournaments 2024 at William Carey: Here's what to know
For the first time since 2018, playoff baseball and softball will be played at William Carey.
William Carey’s baseball and softball teams were granted regional hosts for the NAIA Tournament, which begins next week.
That means seven teams will be staying in Hattiesburg and simultaneous games being played at the baseball and softball stadiums that are steps away from each other at the Kennedy Sports Complex.
Hattiesburg mayor Toby Barker said Thursday that the city expects to bring in $2.9 million by hosting the tournaments, adding to what will already be a busy week in Hattiesburg with Southern Miss baseball hosting Ole Miss on Tuesday and a weekend home series, plus the high school state softball tournament being played at Southern Miss’ Softball Complex.
“Our city bodes access to college baseball and college softball played at a really high level of excellence,” Barker said, “And let's not take that access for granted. So come out this week, watch a game and bring the kids.”
William Carey baseball, softball both win SSAC championships
Both of the William Carey baseball and softball teams won their Southern States Athletic Conference Tournaments last week. They are also both riding season-long winning streaks into the NAIA Tournament, with the baseball team winning eight games in a row and the softball team winning 12 games in a row.
The Lady Crusaders (38-12) are a No. 2 seed in their regional and will open the tournament on Monday at 4 p.m. against No. 3 Reinhardt. Jessup is the No. 1 seed. The baseball team (34-14) is a No. 2 seed and will face No. 3 Oklahoma Wesleyan on Monday at 1:30 p.m. Mid-America Christian earned the No. 1 seed and Milligan is the No. 4 seed.
The Crusaders clinched at least .500 record for the 38th time in coach Bobby Halford’s 39 seasons. This will be his 27th appearance in the NAIA Tournament. William Carey hasn’t won an NAIA World Series since 1969, but Halford has guided them there twice, most recently last season.
First look at the newly built Bobby Halford Fieldhouse at William Carey.
Furniture and other decorations are on the way, but the baseball and softball locker rooms are complete. pic.twitter.com/IUBTBtKbOz— Sam Sklar (@sklarsam_) May 9, 2024
“Anytime you get into a short series like that — you got to pitch well, you got to play defense — but in college baseball you got to swing the bat,” Halford said. “Scoring runs, when you look at these different tournaments, you don't see a lot of 2-1, 3-2 games.”
The Crusaders have just the guy to lead the offensive charge in R.J. Stinson, the senior outfielder who is batting .401 with a 1.151 OPS. He is the reigning SSAC Player of the Year and William Carey’s first finalist for the Ferriss Trophy, the annual award given to Mississippi’s top college baseball player.
The Lady Crusaders are back in the NAIA Tournament after missing out last season. They are led by SSAC Pitcher of the Year Ryanne Hornsby, who is 25-7 record with a 1.52 ERA. Three other players were named first-team all-conference, and Craig Fletcher won SSAC Coach of the Year.
The softball team has made seven World Series appearances, finishing as a runner-up once in 2014.
Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at ssklar@hattiesb.gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: NAIA baseball, softball regional tournaments 2024: Here's what to know
