WINCHESTER — After winning its fifth Old Dominion Athletic Conference Tournament title, the No. 7 Shenandoah is back in familiar territory.

For the 13th time since 2009 and first time since 2023, the 35-10 Hornets will compete in the NCAA Division III Tournament and will host a regional this weekend. Shenandoah’s region also consists of 32-12 Messiah, 29-12 Transylvania and 27-9 Farmingdale State, the latter of which it will face in Game 1 on Friday at 11 a.m.

Just like ODAC Championship Weekend, the regional is a double-elimination, four-team bracket. If Shenandoah defeats Farmingdale State, it will face the winner of Messiah versus Transylvania in Game 4 at 2:30 p.m.on Saturday. The winner of that game moves on to Game 6 at 11 a.m. on Sunday. If an undefeated team loses game six, a seventh game, 40 minutes later, will decide the region champion, who’ll advance to a super regional a week later.

Shenandoah head coach Kevin Anderson said his team must be at its best to defeat these accomplished opponents.

“We have the ability to score runs in a lot of different ways, whether it be our run game or gap power,” Anderson said. “For three out of the four games in the ODAC Tournament, we pitched extremely well, and played error-free ball all four games. We made the routine plays and made some extended effort plays. If we can put all three phases of the game together, then I like our chances [in the NCAA Tournament].”

Although the Hornets will face some tough opponents this weekend, they’ve already been battle-tested. In the first game of ODAC Championship weekend, they defeated a Randolph-Macon team that had won 12 of 13 games 5-3 before defeating then-No. 9 Bridgewater 3-2 to advance to the conference championship.

There, Shenandoah initially lost to then-No. 2 Lynchburg 12-1 in seven innings, before winning the decisive second game in eight innings 14-4. 

Shenandoah’s first opponent this weekend isn’t going to roll over, as Farmingdale State enters the NCAA Tournament on a 21-game winning streak. The Rams led the Skyline Conference in batting average, slugging percentage and fielding percentage. However, they don’t possess the power Shenandoah does, having hit 19 home runs compared to the Hornets’ 41.

Anderson said Farmingdale State will present a serious challenge.

“I don’t know many four seeds that have won 21 games in a row,” Anderson said. “They’re hitting .363 as a team. They’ve got some good arms, they’re really aggressive on the bases, they’ll hit and run, bunt and run. They play situational baseball with their pitchers well.”

Anderson said pitcher Blaine Griffin will get the start against the Rams, and the team will assess its options depending on the matchup for the remainder of the weekend.

Griffin, who’s recorded a 3.26 ERA, a 1.35 WHIP and 46 strikeouts across 14 starts and 69 innings this season, allowed seven hits and no runs against Bridgewater last week. He’s helped Shenandoah’s pitching staff drop its ERA from 5.61 last season to 4.80 this spring.

Shenandoah will need its arms to be at their best against all three teams, including Transylvania, which led the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference in batting average and on-base percentage.

Like Shenandoah, the Pioneers are also aggressive baserunners, tallying a HCAC-best 146 stolen bases. The Hornets lead the ODAC with 116 swiped bags. Anderson said the Pioneers “have a good combination of some big-time arms and big hitters.”

While Transylvania and Farmingdale have won one combined NCAA Tournament game in the past five years, Messiah carries a resume that Shenandoah especially needs to be wary of. The Falcons have significant postseason experience, having finished 2025 as the Division III World Series runner-ups.

Messiah is quite capable of mashing baseballs, having led the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth with a staggering 59 home runs this season. It also led the conference in batting average, walks, slugging percentage and on-base percentage, ERA, strikeouts and opponent batting average.

Shenandoah did defeat Messiah at home in seven innings 14-3 on March 5 after scoring 10 runs in the fifth inning. However, Anderson still believes the Falcons are a team that can’t be counted out.

“They’re outstanding,” Anderson said. “[Outfielder Isaiah Parido] hit 18 home runs. They’re the runner-up; they have a bunch of guys back. They’re very deep on the mound and have a good combination of speed and power. They’re very well coached. They’re an outstanding ball club.”

The last time Shenandoah made the NCAA Tournament, it advanced to the super regional round and was eliminated by Lynchburg. Ten current seniors were members of that team, including team captain outfielders Jaime Padilla and Kyle Garrett.

This season, Padilla has hit .388 with 53 RBIs and 63 runs and is tied for the team lead with 21 stolen bases, while Garrett is batting .337 with 42 RBIs, 48 runs, a team-high 39 walks and 19 stolen bases.

While the duo rarely played during the 2023 season, they were part of a roster competing at the national stage. Anderson said the duo is ready to step up and lead.

“They’ve had a little taste of it,” Anderson said. “They weren’t the marquee back then, now they get an opportunity where they’re the guys. I know they’re ready for it, and we’ve just got to slow the game down and play within our capabilities and try to be the aggressor. Again, those guys are just tremendous leaders and players.”

With a lineup featuring eight players hitting over .300 (minimum 80 at-bats), five with 40-plus RBIs and six with double-digit stolen bases, Shenandoah is capable of hanging with its opponents offensively.

Having played four games in three days last week during ODAC Championship Weekend, the Hornets already proved they’re capable of stacking up against several impressive teams all within a few days’ time.

Anderson said he’s glad his team has the opportunity to compete in the NCAA Tournament in front of its fans and local community and said he appreciates Shenandoah University for hosting the weekend.

“I thank Dr. [DeShon] Foxx and the rest of the athletic department for putting in to host a regional,” Anderson said. “Seeing all the people and other coaches from other sports volunteer to work [the regional] … it makes you feel very good about the close-knit fraternity that we have here at Shenandoah. For the athletic department to step up to host an NCAA regional, it’s a huge undertaking.”

Game 3 will match the losers and Game 1 and Game 2 on Saturday at 11 a.m. The Game 3 loser will take on the Game 4 winner in Game 5 on Saturday at 6 p.m.