Historic Season Comes to a Close for Lady Royals in NAIA Opening Round

The historic 2026 season for the Johnson University Lady Royals came to an end on Wednesday afternoon as they fell to Indiana Wesleyan, 10-2, in the NAIA Opening Round in Columbia, Kentucky.

Johnson finished the year with a 34-19 record, capping off one of the most successful seasons in program history that included a conference tournament championship appearance and a national tournament berth.

Indiana Wesleyan struck first with a solo home run in the opening inning before adding another run in the second to take a 2-0 lead. The Wildcats then broke the game open in the third inning with six runs to extend their advantage to 8-0.

The Lady Royals responded in the fourth inning with two runs of their own. Autumn Caywood reached base and later scored on an RBI groundout from Aundrea Huddleston. Kadie Presley followed with another RBI groundout to bring home Megan Armstrong and cut the deficit to 8-2.

Armstrong led Johnson offensively with a 2-for-3 performance at the plate, while Caywood, Adelaide Hubbard, Dylan Jablonski, and Presley each recorded hits. Presley and Huddleston drove in the two runs for the Lady Royals.

Lindy Webber got the start in the circle, while Taylor Minnick provided 3.1 innings of relief work.

Despite the loss, the Lady Royals close the season having established new milestones for the program and earning their place among the top teams in the nation.