INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- The 15th-ranked Texas Lutheran Bulldogs open the NCAA Division III Softball Championship in Tyler, Texas for a second straight year as they take on East Texas Baptist on Friday in their first game of the Regional.

The Bulldogs (36-4) learned Monday morning that they will play in a four-team regional with No. 2 University of Texas at Tyler, No. 3 East Texas Baptist and unranked Whittier (Calif.).

Texas Lutheran earned the automatic big from the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference, winning the conference regular season and tournament championship. The Bulldogs were perfect in SCAC play, going 23-0 and a perfect 3-0 in the tournament. 

Texas Lutheran became only the fourth team to win consecutive SCAC championships and the first to do so since DePauw University won back-to-back title in 2008 and 2009.

The Bulldogs have won 33 straight games with their last loss coming on March 2nd to Calumet College of St. Jospeh. They had also won a SCAC-record 34 straight conference games dating back to last season.

A year ago in Tyler, Texas Lutheran opened up the Regional with a walk-off double in the bottom of the 10th from Nicole Clodfelter, lifting Texas Lutheran to a 2-1 win over then-No. 3-ranked University of Texas at Tyler.

The Bulldogs would lose their next two games to East Texas Baptist in the three team Regional, reaching the finals against the Tigers before falling, 5-1.

Texas Lutheran is led by SCAC Player of the Year Jennifer Gallagher, who comes in with a .439 average with 15 doubles and 44 RBI, and SCAC Pitcher of the Year Taylor Grissom, who is 19-0 on the season with an ERA of 0.58 in 96.1 innings pitched.

First pitch is scheduled for Friday, May 8th at 2 p.m. at UT-Tyler's Suddenlink Field in Tyler, Texas.

NCAA Division III Softball Championship