Photos submitted by KIRK DAVIES

Former Burns High School standout, Ayla Davies, led the Southern Oregon University (SOU) Raiders (55-9) to their fourth NAIA National Title in six years with a 6-3 win over Oklahoma City on Thursday, May 29th.  

Davies pitched all 61 innings for SOU at the World Series, breaking the tournament record with 71 strikeouts and shutting out three different opponents, including Oklahoma City which hadn’t been shutout in 210 games. After suffering a loss in the opening round of the World Series, Davies and the Raiders became the first team in history to win seven elimination games to win the title.  

Davies was selected to the World Series All-Tournament Team and named the World Series MVP. She ended her freshman campaign as the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Pitcher of the Year and went 38-5 with a 1.20 ERA in 297 innings pitched, registering 36 complete games, 19 shutouts and 312 strikeouts. 

The Burns product holds the record for SOU for number of strikeouts in a season, number of shutouts in a season, and number of wins in a season. Davies also has the most strikeouts this season for any NAIA pitcher in the nation and eight more wins than any other pitcher. She also holds the CCC record for number of strikeouts, shutouts, and number of wins in a season. 

Davies was recently named NAIA Pitcher of the Year and NAIA 1st Team All

America, Ayla was also awarded the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s (NFCA) NAIA Pitcher of the Year and Freshman of the Year Award. She also received a Gold Glove Award for the CCC.