MIAC Release | Live Stats: Game One | Game Two

ST. PAUL, Minn.—Last week, all 12 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) softball teams learned they'd be in the 2013 MIAC Softball Playoff field when the league decided to alter its format after the regular season was decimated by inclement weather. Thursday, all 12 teams learned their seed, pool assignment and first-day matchups when the conference determined and announced the seeds. The tournament will be hosted by Gustavus Adolphus College Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Caswell Park in North Mankato, Minn.
 
Bethel University's softball team enters the three-day affair as the No. 2 seed overall—the highest rank in program history. With a 23-13 overall record, including a 14-6 mark in conference play, the Royals will be one of four teams to headline a pool of three teams. The other top seeds include No. 1 St. Thomas, No. 3 St. Olaf, and No. 4 Saint Mary's.

In the new format, which will be exclusive to 2013, Friday's action will feature the four three-team pools engaging in round-robin play, with the winner of each pool advancing to the usual four-team, double-elimination format, which will play out on Saturday and Sunday to determine the MIAC's postseason champion, and the recipient of the league's automatic bid to the 2013 NCAA Division III Softball Tournament.
 
Because teams completed varying numbers of conference games this season, the coaches elected to adopt a seeding method that takes into account winning percentage in both conference and overall games, and the NCAA's in-region strength-of-schedule number. Each team's conference rank in each of the three categories were added together to determine the 12 seeds.
 
The four pools were then determined by grouping the top eight together as assigned with No. 1 and No. 8 in Pool A, No. 2 and No. 7 in Pool B, No. 3 and No. 6 in Pool C and No. 4 and No. 5 in Pool D. Then, teams seeded No. 9-12 were randomly assigned to one of the four pools.
 
The Royals will be joined in Pool B by No. 7 Saint Benedict (19-17, 8-12 MIAC) and No. 11 Augsburg (12-26, 5-15 MIAC).
 
In each pool, the top seed will take on the lowest seed at 3 p.m., followed by the two lower seeds playing at 5 p.m. and the top two seeds meeting at 7 p.m. The winner from each pool will advance to the four-team, double-elimination tournament. The conference coaches have established tiebreaker criteria in pool play, and that criteria is available on the 2013 MIAC Softball Playoff home page.
 
The four-team double-elimination portion of the tournament begins with two first-round games at 3 p.m. The two winners advance and meet at 5 p.m., and the two first-round losers also meet at 5 p.m. in an elimination game. An elimination semifinal will take place Sunday at 9 a.m. with the championship slated for 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., if a second game is needed. Original seeds will carry over to seed the double-elimination portion.
 
Complete details for the 2013 MIAC Softball Playoffs are available on the tournament's home page. Host school Gustavus plans to provide live stats for all 12 round-robin pool games Friday, and live video/audio for the remainder of the tournament, weather and staff permitting. The MIAC will update the Softball Playoff home page throughout the tournament with results, box scores, updated schedules, recaps, photos and more.