SOFT: Simmons, Albertus Magnus Finish Atop Divisional Standings In Upcoming Postseason Tournament
WINTHROP, Mass. – Simmons (12-0 North) and Albertus Magnus (9-3 South) finished the regular season atop of the conference divisional standings to clinch the No. 1 seeds in their respective divisions in the upcoming Great North Athletic Conference (GNAC) Softball Championship Tournament. The Sharks went 14-4 in GNAC play (20-18 overall) while the Falcons were 14-4 in conference play (21-16 overall) this year to secure the right to host one of two four-team double-elimination pods in the tournament.
In the North, Simmons will face #4 north seed Emmanuel (7-5 North) while #2 North seed Saint Joseph's (Maine) (8-4 North) will take on #3 North seed Rivier (7-5 North). The Raiders and Saints had to go through a series of tiebreakers to be separated as the two split in their meetings while also holding similiar records to their higher ranked divisional opponents (0-2 against Simmons and 1-1 against SJC). Because the two did not share a South divisional opponent, the next step was common opponent in which both teams were swept by UMass Boston and Rivier had split with Wentworth while Emmanuel lost a single game. Because of the extra game, the next step was to break the tie from overall records, in which the Raiders went 15-21 and Emmanuel went 14-22 as the two both equaled 36 regular season contests.
In the South, Albertus Magnus will face #4 South seed Lasell (6-6 South) after the Lasers had won a three-way tie between Dean and Mitchell after sweeping both head-to head. At #2 in the south is the University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) (7-5 South) and no. 3 Regis (7-5 South) after the two split in their final divisional games. The Blue Jays won the tiebreaker after splitting with Albertus Magnus and Regis went 0-2 against the Falcons, thus breaking that tie.
Both pods will feature two games on Wednesday, April 29 with action at the top two seeds in each division. Day two of Pod Play has three games scheduled for Saturday, May 2 with the Pod Finals scheduled for Sunday, May 3. The two teams advancing out their respective pods will meet for a best-of-three GNAC Baseball Championship Series. The Championship Series begins on Friday, May 8 with game two and the "if necessary" game scheduled for Saturday, May 9.
The winner of the GNAC Championship Series earned the title of 2026 GNAC Softball Champion and will earn the league's automatic qualifier into the 2026 NCAA Division III Softball Championship.
2026 GNAC Softball Tournament Schedule
Pod A
GNAC Pod Play – Day 1
Wednesday, April 29 – hosted at higher seeds
Game 1A: #1N Simmons v. #4N Emmanuel, 5:00 pm
Game 2A: #2S University of Saint Joseph (Conn.) v. #3S Regis, 3:30 pm
Pod Play - Day 2
Saturday, May 2 – hosted at #1N Simmons
Game 3A: W Game 1A v W Game 2A, 11:00 am
Game 4A: L Game 1A v L Game 2A (elimination game), 2:00 pm
Game 5A: L Game 3A v W Game 4A (elimination game), 5:00 pm
Pod Finals
Sunday, May 3 – hosted at #1N Simmons
Game 6A: W Game 3A v W Game 5A, 12:00 pm
Game 7A: Repeat of game 6A (if necessary), 30 minutes after conclusion of game 6A
Pod B
GNAC Pod Play – Day 1
Wednesday, April 29 – hosted at higher seeds
Game 1: #1S Albertus Magnus v. #4S Lasell, 1:00 pm
Game 2: #2N Saint Joseph's (Maine) v. #3N Rivier, tbd
GNAC Pod Play – Day 2
Saturday, May 2 – hosted at #1S Albertus Magnus
Game 3: W Game 1 v W Game 2, 10:00 am
Game 4: L Game 1 v L Game 2 (elimination game), 1:00 pm
Game 5: L Game 3 v W Game 4 (elimination game), 4:00 pm
Pod Finals
Sunday, May 3 – hosted at #1S Albertus Magnus
Game 6: W Game 3 v W Game 5, 10:00 am
Game 7: If necessary, repeat of game 6 if W Game 5 wins Game 6
(elimination game), 1:00 pm
Championship Series
Friday, May 8 (Location dependent on even or odd year and
highest seed remaining)
Game 8: Pod A winner v Pod B winner, tbd
Saturday, May 9 (same location)
Game 9: Pod A winner v Pod B winner (elimination
game if W Game 8 wins), tbd
Game 10 (If each team has a win): Pod A winner v Pod
B winner (elimination game), tbd
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The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 14 member institutions and over 4000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 20 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
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