NJCAA Softball championships to return in 2025

Arizona Western wins the bid to bring back the NJCAA Softball championships to the Desert Southwest

YUMA, Ariz. ( KYMA, KECY-TV ) - After the dust settled following the 2022 NJCAA Softball Championships at the Pacific Avenue Athletic Complex, Arizona Western Athletic Director Jerry Smith was already looking ahead to the future.

"We're putting in a bid to bring back the tournament in 2025," Smith said in late May of 2022. "There's a lot of work we have to do but I think we'll have a good shot at it."

This week the NJCAA announced that Arizona Western will once again be the host for the tournament starting in 2025.

"We look forward to having this championship in Yuma once again," NJCAA Senior Vice President for External Affairs & Development Brian Luckett said in the press release. "Arizona Western has a history of providing a first-class championship experience for all the student-athletes, coaches, and fans in attendance." 

This year and in 2024 the championship is being held in Oxford, Alabama. Arizona Western is already preparing for the 20 teams to arrive in late May of 2025.

"It's close to a million dollars in revenue that the city of Yuma gets from this," AWC Sports Information Director Michael Broskowski said. "Teams are staying in their hotels, they're eating in the restaurants here, they're doing things in the community for a week, sometimes even more teams that go all the way through are here for about a week and a half, so it's a huge economic boost from this local community."