Following what was a historic 2026 softball season, which included winning their first-ever CIAA Softball championship, the Claflin Panthers will now have their shot at a national championship, competing in the NCAA Division II Softball tournament.
Claflin’s run to the CIAA title began with a regular season run during which they finished with a 27-12 record, the most wins they’ve had in a year since 2023.
They opened the CIAA tournament with a pair of clinical wins over Lincoln (PA) and Bluefield State. They then advanced to the Finals after taking down Winston-Salem State in the final matchup of the winner’s bracket.
Winston-Salem State would meet them in the Finals, avoiding double elimination by ending Bowie State’s hopes of a fourth straight CIAA title with a 7-5 victory.
In a game that went down to the wire, Claflin secured the championship win in the final inning thanks to a walk-off RBI single by tournament MVP Aniyah Jackson.
Drawing the eight-seed in the Atlantic Region, the Panthers will look forward to a first-round matchup against the number-one seed, Shippensburg.
Shippensburg enters the national tournament with a 38-16 overall record, having claimed the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) tournament championship, beating East Stroudsburg in the final.
The opening round matchup between Claflin and Shippensburg is set for May 14 at noon EST. The winner of this game will advance to play against the winner of the game between Glenville State and Charleston, while the losers will face each other in a win-or-go-home contest.
