BOTETOURT, Va. --- Biola Softball has touched down in Virginia and had its last practice of the 2019 season as it prepares to open play at the 2019 National Christian College Athletic Association World Series.

The Eagles are the No. 2 overall seed in the tournament and the top seed in Pool B as pool play begins Wednesday and concludes Thursday. Semifinals are scheduled for Thursday evening and the championship game on Friday.

Weather forecast looks good for all 15 games to remain on schedule at the Botetourt Sports Complex, with partly cloudy conditions and temperatures in the 70s or 80s all three days.

All 15 games of the tournament will be live streamed on the NCCAA Network. Video passes are available for purchase at $6.95 per game or $32.95 for an all-tournament pass. Complimentary live statistics are also available. The links for those are listed at the Biola Softball schedule page and this year's tournament central page.

No. 2 BIOLA (26-14) vs. No. 7 Ecclesia (13-17): Wednesday May 15 at 9am PT \\ Live Stats \\ Live Video
Biola and Ecclesia have never met before on the softball field. The Royals made their way into this year's NCCAA World Series field as one of two at-large bids after coming up short in two chances at the NCCAA regionals. Ecclesia is the only school in the tournament that is solely affiliated with the NCCAA and not dual-affiliated with either NCAA Division II or the NAIA. They come into the tournament at 13-17 overall, having struggled as of late with losses in 12 of their last 14 ballgames. Their only contest this season against another team from the NCCAA World Series field came at their regional last week. It was a 5-0 loss at the hands of Southwestern Assemblies of God University. This season the Royals hit .295 as a team and scored an average of 4.40 runs-per-game. A lack of power has held this Ecclesia team back slightly, having hit just four total homeruns all year. One hundred sixty two of Ecclesia's 198 hits this year were singles. The Royals have not really attempted to make up the extra bases on the base paths, either, stealing just 25 bags this season. They allowed opponents an average of 5.3 runs-per-game, with their pitchers compiling a staff ERA of 4.58. They had four players with double-digit RBI, led by Ashtyn Rothrock, who hit .352 with two homeruns, 15 RBI and 13 runs scored. Rothrock was also the team's most effective and most utilized pitcher. She threw 82 innings and led the staff with an ERA just over three. Her six wins were the highest on the staff. Rothrock is a junior on the team and comes from Lincoln, Arkansas.

No. 2 BIOLA (26-14) vs. No. 6 Cincinnati Christian (21-20): Wednesday May 15 at 1:30pm PT \\ Live Stats \\ Live Video
Just like the first matchup was, this game will mark the first-ever meeting between Biola and Cincinnati Christian. The two teams are both nicknamed the Eagles, which happens to be the mascot of three of the eight teams in this year's NCCAA field (all three in Pool B). The purple Eagles earned their spot at this tournament on the merit of an at-large selection. CCU finished its regular season with a 9-6 win over Midway University to end up one game over .500. They were supposed to play Concordia Ann Arbor in a series for the Mid-West Regional Championship, but rain forced the cancellation of the series. They did play one game against CUAA earlier in the season, with that resulting in a 6-4 loss. That's the only tournament team they've faced this year. Cincinnati Christian is a regular member of the NAIA and the River States Conference. The Eagles score 5.3 runs-per-game on average and hit .314 as a team. They've hit nine bombs this year and managed an impressive 16 triples. They've got eight players with double-digit RBI, led by Aleesha Rodriguez, who's hitting .315 with three big flies and 25 RBI. The team is susceptible to the strikeout, though, with 162 strikeouts and just 107 walks drawn. They are a team that can get around the bases more frequently, stealing 46 bases in 56 tries this year. On the other side of the field, CCU comes in allowing opponents just over four runs-per-game. They sport a staff ERA of 3.27 and will likely turn to their number one pitcher as they face the top team in the pool. Jessica Tinsley is that number one pitcher, logging almost 100 innings and posting a 9-10 record with a 2.89 ERA. Tinsley struck out 111 batters this year while walking just 28. Biola will need to be patient in facing her and ensure they put the ball in play. If they can put it into play it will be in the hands of the CCU defense with 64 errors this season. With it being the second game of the tournament there's a chance Biola will face CCU's number two option, Brooke Wesley, who's actually been the hardest pitcher to hit on the CCU staff this year, holding batters to just a .212 mark in over 40 innings of work. Cincinnati Christian has not played since the last week of April. It's 5-5 in its last 10 times out.

No. 2 BIOLA (26-14) vs. No. 3 Judson (27-16): Thursday May 16 at 7am PT \\ Live Stats \\ Live Video
Judson is the only team in this field that has a previous matchup with Biola. The Eagles and Eagles met once back in March 2006 with Biola claiming a 10-2 victory. This year's Judson team is having a great season, going 11 games over .500 overall and still finishing as low as fifth in the competitive Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference in the NAIA. Judson qualified for the tournament as the North Central Region champions after winning a pair of games against Hannibal-LaGrange. Judson won five of their last six games overall, but their one loss sure was a stinger. The loss came 5-0 to St. Xavier in the final round of the CCAC Tournament, missing out on a spot at the NAIA national tournament as a result. Judson can bop the ball around the park, averaging 5.5 runs-per-game while giving up just 3.7 runs-per-game. Judson's also got many more strikeouts than it has walks this season, but 117 extra-base hits seem to negate any negative from the high strikeout rate. Judson has 19 homeruns this season, which is the most by any team in the pool. They're led by Sarah Kessler, who's managed to hit .397 with a team-high five bombs and driven in 15 runs. She's played in just 31 of the team's 43 games. She's also made the second-most pitching appearances on the staff this season with 24. Judson features a two-headed monster of Kessler and Lindsay Zdroik who've combined for 225 innings this season and allowed just about 70 earned runs. Zdroik leads the staff with 120 innings and a 2.03 ERA. Zdroik was recently named Judson's conference's pitcher of the year for her work in 2019. She's 10-5 on the year and Kessler is 12-3. After that there's a bit of a drop-off in the staff, so we will see who Biola draws from Judson in the third game of the tournament.

Other possible contests:
Semifinal Number 1 (if Biola comes out as second-best team in Pool B): Thursday May 16 1 p.m. PT
Semifinal Number 2 (if Biola wins Pool B): Thursday May 16 3 p.m. PT
Championship game: Friday May 17 9 a.m. PT

Pool B Statistical Comparison:
Games Played:
Judson - 43
Cincinnati Christian - 41
Biola - 40
Ecclesia - 30

Runs-Per-Game:
Judson - 5.5
Cincinnati Christian - 5.3
Biola - 4.8
Ecclesia - 4.4

Runs Against-Per-Game:
Biola - 3.7
Judson - 3.8
Cincinnati Christian - 4.2
Ecclesia - 5.3

Winning Percentage:
Judson - .628
Biola - .600
Cincinnati Christian - .512
Ecclesia - .433

Batting Average:
Cincinnati Christian - .314
Biola - .308
Judson - .301
Ecclesia - .295

Team ERA:
Biola - 2.82
Judson - 2.85
Cincinnati Christian - 3.27
Ecclesia - 4.58

Homeruns:
Judson - 19
Biola - 18
Cincinnati Christian - 9
Ecclesia - 4

Triples:
Cincinnati Christian - 16
Judson - 13
Biola - 7
Ecclesia - 1

Doubles:
Judson - 85
Biola - 66
Cincinnati Christian - 64
Ecclesia - 31

Steals:
Judson - 67
Cincinnati Christian - 46
Biola - 45
Ecclesia - 25

Batting Strikeouts:
Cincinnati Christian - 162
Judson - 159
Biola - 114
Ecclesia - 75

Batting Walks:
Judson - 116
Cincinnati Christian - 107
Biola - 93
Ecclesia - 77

Batting Average Against:
Biola - .246
Judson - .256
Cincinnati Christian - .271
Ecclesia - .291

Pitching Strikeouts:
Cincinnati Christian - 227
Biola - 199
Judson - 180
Ecclesia - 129

Pitching Walks:
Ecclesia - 68
Cincinnati Christian - 85
Judson - 85
Biola - 122

Homeruns Allowed:
Cincinnati Christian - 9
Biola - 15
Judson - 17
Ecclesia - 22

Fielding Errors:
Ecclesia - 50
Biola - 59
Cincinnati Christian - 64
Judson - 66

Fielding Percentage:
Judson - .950
Biola - .949
Cincinnati Christian - .943
Ecclesia - .932