DEWITT, N.Y., May 23, 2022 – An historic season for the Monroe College Express softball team is about to culminate in the team's first-ever appearance at the NJCAA Div. III Softball Championship, as the Express head to Dewitt, N.Y. for this year's eight-team championship tournament this week. The tournament will be held at Carrier Park from May 25-28.
 
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Championship Central
2022 NJCAA Division III Softball Championship
Dewitt, N.Y. – Carrier Park Field of Dreams
May 25-28
 
TICKETS
Day Pass:
Adult- $10 Student/Senior- $8
All Session Pass:
Adult- $20 Student/Senior- $15
CASH ONLY. There is no ATM on site.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Video: NJCAA Network ($)
Stats: MonroeExpress.com/SBLiveStats
 
GAME SCHEDULE
Day 1 - Wednesday, May 25

	Field 1	Field 2
12:00 PM	Game 1 - #1 vs. #8	Game 2 - #4 vs. #5
2:00 PM 5:00 PM 7:00 PM	Game 3 - #3 vs. #6 Game 5 - W1 vs. W2 Game 6 - W3 vs. W4	Game 4 - #2 vs. #7

Day 2 - Thursday, May 26
10:00 PM     Game 7 - L1 vs. L2
12:00 PM     Game 8 - L3 vs. L4
2:00 PM       Game 9 - W7 vs. L6
4:00 PM       Game 10 - W8 vs. L5
7:00 PM       Game 11 - W5 vs. W6
Day 3 - Friday, May 27
12:00 PM     Game 12 - 7th Place Game - L7 vs. L8
2:00 PM       Game 13 - 5th Place Game - L9 vs. L10
5:00 PM       Game 14 - W9 vs. W10
7:00 PM       Game 15 - W14 vs. L11
Day 4 - Saturday, May 28
12:00 PM     Championship Game 1 - W15 vs. W11
APPROX 30 minutes after Game 16 ****Championship Game 17 (if Necessary if L16 has one loss)
 
THE FIELD
Championship Bracket
Bracket Announcement
 
#1 Rock Valley College: 44-11 / Midwest District
#2 Corning Community College: 37-6 / North A District
#3 North Dakota State College of Science: 37-10 / North Plains B District
#4 Herkimer College: 32-7-1 / North B District
#5 Brookdale Community College: 30-10 / North Atlantic A District
#6 Middlesex College: 23-7 / North Atlantic B District
#7 St. Cloud Technical & Community College: 38-3 / North Plains A District
#8 Monroe College-Bronx: 26-14 / Northeast District
 
THE EXPRESS ROUTE
The Express are making their first-ever appearance at the NJCAA Div. III Softball Championship in 2022, just four years into the program's existence. Monroe began its softball program in 2019, and with the 2020 season being canceled before it could begin, 2022 was just the third season the Express have ever played.
 
Prior to this season, in which the Express have accumulated a 26-14 overall record, the Express had never won more than four games in a season. After picking up just three wins in 2021, the Express returned nine student-athletes from last season, seven of which have been regular starters in the lineup for the Express this year. The hard work, dedication, and of course some added new talent as well, have led to nearly a ten-fold increase in success for the Express.
 
A sign of things to come came in the first week of the 2022 season, when the Express traveled to North Carolina for six games, coming away with a 4-2 record to already surpass last year's win total. That trip helped kick off a nine-game winning streak for the Express, including victories over Div. I and Div. II opponents. That run was halted by another NJCAA Championship tournament team, Middlesex College, which swept the Express down in New Jersey. However, the Express bounced back with an 11-6 victory over the Colts on March 26, but never got to play Game 2 after inclement weather washed it out.
 
The Express had some struggles in early April, losing 9-of-10 games before a victory in their final matchup with Suffolk County Community College sparked a complete 180 for the rest of the season. The win over the sharks became a seven-game winning streak to close out the regular season, giving Monroe some momentum heading into the Region 15 Championship series against Suffolk.
 
The Express won the opener in a thrilling 10-inning contest, 6-4, before Suffolk evened the series with a 9-2 win. The Express then held onto an early lead in the rubber match, claiming a 5-4 win to earn the team's first-ever Region 15 Title. The Express then had the opportunity to take home its first Northeast District Championship, taking on Butler County Community College in another best-of-three series out in Cabot, Pa. The Express rolled to a 9-1 win in the opener, and then clinched the District Title with an 18-7, run-rule win over the Pioneers to earn their spot at the NJCAA Championship.
 
A GLANCE AT THE FIELD
The NJCAA Div. III Softball Championship field is a challenge from top to bottom. No team has a bigger target on its back than top-seeded Rock Valley College, the Express' opening-round opponent. Rock Valley enters this 2022 tournament as the seven-time defending champion, with its sights set on making it eight titles in a row.
 
The Express are not the only team with the luxury of a short trip up to the Syracuse area this week. No. 2 Corning and No. 4 Herkimer both come from Upstate New York, with Herkimer serving as the tournament's host. No. 5 Brookdale and No. 6 Middlesex will both travel up from New Jersey. Corning enters the championship after winning the Region III crown for the second straight season. Herkimer rolled through its sub-regional and Region 3B Championship tournaments to become North B District champs and earn its 11th trip to the NJCAA Championship.
 
Brookdale heads into the tournament for the 18th time, the most in NJCAA Division III history. Middlesex earned its way into the tournament after upsetting the North Atlantic District's top-ranked team, the NJCAA's No. 10-ranked Rowan College South Jersey-Gloucester.
 
No. 3 North Dakota SCS won the North Plains B District to earn a spot in the NJCAA Championship for the third time in the past four seasons. No. 7 St. Cloud Tech heads into the week with the best record of any of the eight teams in the tournament at 38-3, and heads to Dewitt riding a 12-game winning streak.
 
The first round of the NJCAA Div. III Softball Championship will open up on Wednesday with No. 1 Rock Valley vs. No. 8 Monroe-Bronx at 12 p.m. on Field 1, while No. 4 Herkimer and No. 5 Brookdale go head-to-head at 12 p.m. on Field 2. No. 3 North Dakota SCS and No. 6 Middlesex face off at 2 p.m. on Field 1, while No. 2 Corning takes on No. 7 St. Cloud Tech on Field 2 at 2 p.m. The winner's bracket games will then be played at 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Wednesday, while the loser's bracket matchups will kick off Thursday's action. The double-elimination tournament will continue through Championship Saturday, when a champion will be crowned.

ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE COLLEGE
The athletic program at Monroe College encompasses a total of 35 teams competing across nine sports. There are 21 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as club men's and women's rugby, the Monroe College marching band, and the newly added esports and men's volleyball programs, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has 14 teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Express, please visit us at www.MonroeExpress.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Express), Twitter (@MonroeExpress) and Instagram (@MonroeExpress).