BLOOMINGTON, IL -- #4 Rowan defeated #9 Texas Lutheran, 5-0, on Thursday in the Profs' opener at the 2025 NCAA Division III Championship Tournament at Inspiration Field on the campus of Illinois Wesleyan.

Rowan, the No. 2 seed, will face the winner of the Trine/Redlands game tomorrow at 4 p.m. CT/5 p.m. ET to continue on in the double elimination tournament. The Bulldogs are the No. 7 seed.

BRACKET | CHAMPIONSHIP HOMEPAGE | DIVISION III SOFTBALL

Liz McCaffery was 3-for-4 with three RBI's including a two-run home run in the third and Cami Morgan added a big pinch hit, two-run single as part of a three-run fourth to help spark the offense.

Starter Rylee Lutz surrendered just five hits with three walks and two strikeouts to raise her record to 22-1 and notch her 16th shutout on the year.

Lutz got key plays from the defense in ending both the second and third innings with runners on. Payton MacNair had a nice backhand stab in the hole at short on a tough grounder for the final out in the second. Breanna Bryant capped the third inning as she snagged a hard liner at third base with runners at second and third.

In the bottom of that third with pinch runner Maeve Lougheed at second after a sacrifice to second, McCaffery cranked the first pitch she saw over the wall in left for her team-leading fourth homer to stake the Profs to a 2-0 lead.

In the bottom of the fourth, Rowan struck for three runs, all with two outs. Morgan stepped in with the bases loaded and sent a ball just inside the third base line to score Bryant and Aly Reim. McCaffery followed with a double down the right field line to plate Holly Markus for a 5-0 advantage.

Lutz got a double play in the sixth from MacNair to Markus and worked 1-2-3 seventh to sew up the win.