AthleticsSweet RepeatNo Author ProvidedMay 17, 2021Invalid ImageNo Image Credit ProvidedNo Caption ProvidedSeattle University softball won its second straight Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Tournament Championship with a 7-5 win over New Mexico State and will open the 2021 NCAA tournament with a game against Big Ten champion Michigan this Friday.Seattle University softball will return to the University of Washington for the 2021 NCAA Tournament this week. The Redhawks, who won their second WAC Tournament Championship on Saturday, will open with a game against Big Ten champion Michigan at UW for a four-team, double-elimination regional with the 16th-seeded Huskies and Portland State. Seattle U and Michigan will square off on Friday, May 21, at 5 p.m. at Husky Softball Stadium. Seattle U (29-19) won all three of its games at the 2021 WAC Tournament this past weekend, defending its 2019 tournament title. Seattle U is just the third team in WAC history to repeat as tournament champions, joining New Mexico State (2017-18) and Utah (1991-92). Coach Geoff Hirai's squad won all six WAC series heading into the conference tournament. Carley Nance won all three games and hit three home runs on her way to earning her second straight WAC Tournament MVP award. She is the first player in conference history to win two WAC Tournament MVP honors. Ally Choate leads the team with a .375 batting average and a .442 on-base percentage in 47 games this season. The senior was one of seven Redhawks to earn All-WAC recognition this season, as classmates Bailey Thompson (nine HRs, 45 RBIs) and Cherise Silvan (.344 average, 14 steals) joined Choate as First Team All-WAC picks. SU's pitching staff is the strength of the team, as Nance, Shi and Stefanie Madrigal each earned All-WAC honors. The trio is the only pitching staff in the NCAA Tournament to have three all-conference selections this year. The Redhawks are also one of just two teams in the country with the top three in ERA in their conference (James Madison). Michigan went 36-6 and won the Big Ten regular-season title. Alex Storaco leads the Wolverines with a 21-3 record and a 0.88 ERA this year. In 2019, the Redhawks won their first-ever Division I NCAA Tournament game, beating Fordham, 1-0, at UW. In last Saturday's WAC championship game, Nance was joined by Mekenzie Madokoro, Alyson Matriotti, Bailey Thompson and Olivia Viggiano on the WAC All-Tournament Team.