The University of Minnesota Duluth softball team was among the 10 teams listed as being under consideration for a bid to the NCAA Tournament Central Regional when the first regional rankings were revealed on Wednesday.
This first of what will be three regional rankings is simply an alphabetical list of teams that are currently in the hunt. The next two rankings will be numerically ranked.
With two weeks left in the regular season, the Bulldogs (31-15 overall, 24-14 in-region) are one of four NSIC teams to make the shortlist, the others being Augustana University, Minnesota State University, Mankato and Winona State University. UMD swept Augustana for the first time in nearly a decade on the road this season. UMD and Minnesota State split both of its non-conference and conference series against one another, and the Bulldogs dropped both contests to Winona State.
UMD is in search of its 11th NCAA Tournament appearance and its first since 2023 when it won the NSIC Postseason Tournament.
The full Central Region list can be found below:
| CENTRAL REGION |
DII Record |
In-Region |
| Augustana (NSIC) |
37-9 |
34-8 |
| Central Oklahoma (MIAA) |
37-6 |
33-6 |
| Harding (GAC) |
34-11 |
30-9 |
| Minnesota Duluth (NSIC) |
31-15 |
24-14 |
| Minnesota State (NSIC) |
34-14 |
25-12 |
| Pittsburg St. (MIAA) |
33-11 |
29-9 |
| Rogers St. (MIAA) |
32-11 |
30-8 |
| Southern Arkansas (GAC) |
35-5 |
34-4 |
| Washburn (MIAA) |
29-18 |
23-16 |
| Winona State (NSIC) |
32-11 |
24-8 |
The NCAA Central Region is made up of 40 teams spanning across three conferences, those from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC), the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) and the Great American Conference (GAC). Eight teams will qualify for the NCAA Tournament with automatic bids awarded to the tournament champions from each conference and the final five spots awarded on an at-large basis.
The NCAA softball Tournament selection show will be announced on www.ncaa.com on Monday, May 5. The NCAA Championships are set for May 22-28 at Frost Stadium at Warner Park, Chattanooga, Tenn.
The NSIC Softball Tournament is set for April 30-May 3 at Bowden Field in Sioux Falls, S.D.; hosted by Augustana University. The top-ten teams in the NSIC standings will participate in the single elimination tournament for conference bragging rights and the automatic tournament bid.
