The Lady Mustangs (25-5) earned the third of 14 at-large berths based upon being ranked No. 10 in the country in the latest NAIA Division 1 poll. It is the first time since 2008 the team has gone after the national championship.
The Master’s will play Carroll College of Montana (20-9) in the first round on Wednesday, March 13th.
“We’re excited to go back to the national tournament,” commented Lady Mustang head coach Dan Waldeck. “Carroll’s a great team, and we’re going to have to play well to compete with them. We’re continuing to work on the things we do well, and make sure we’re ready to hit the floor on Wednesday.”
The 32-team field is comprised of 17 automatic berths, Mid-South Conference host institution Georgetown (Ky.) and 14 at-large selections, which were determined using the final regular-season Coaches’ Top 25 Poll released earlier today.
Top-ranked Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) highlights the field with an NAIA-best 31-1 overall record. The Lady Lions are making their 17th trip to the national championship and own a 21-16 record in those contests.
Defending national champion Oklahoma City enters the championship as the most decorated of the 32 teams. The Stars, who qualified as the No. 1 at-large out of the Sooner Athletic Conference and are making their 16th-straight (18th all-time) appearance, rank third all-time with 54 victories at the event, trailing only former-NAIA members Union (Tenn.) (67) and Southern Nazarene (Okla.) (58). Oklahoma City ranks second all-time with six national titles in nine trips to the finals, including four-straight crowns from 1999 – 2002. Vanguard, winner of the 2013 Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) title, is the only other qualifier with a national championship (2008) on its resume.
Lady Mustangs Heading to National Championship Tournament
