Fresh off a pair of South Region titles, the Shorter men and women’s basketball teams are now preparing for the next assignment: The National Christian College Athletic Association championship event.

The Shorter teams learned their first round draws for their respective NCCAA Division I Championship tournaments late Saturday night when the pairings were released.

Both the Hawks and Lady Hawks are seeded No. 5 and will play on Wednesday night when the Championship tips off on the campus of Grace College in Winona Lake, Ind.

On the men’s side, Shorter (18-11) will take on fourth-seeded Mid-America Christian (17-12) on Wednesday at noon.

Shorter’s men enter the Championship event on the shoulders of a 87-75 win over Southern Wesleyan in the South Region title game on Saturday.

The Hawks — who swept through their three regional games, winning by an average of 14 points — will be making their first appearance in the NCCAA Championship event.

Mid-America Christian earned its automatic bid to the NCCAA Men’s Basketball Championship by virtue of a 68-66 win over McMurry in the Central Region championship game. The Evangels, who play in the deep and talented NAIA Sooner Athletic Conference, are making their 22nd NCCAA Men’s Basketball Championship appearance and are in search of a fifth championship.

On the women’s side, Shorter has drawn fourth-seeded Southern Nazarene in the quarterfinals. The Lady Hawks (18-11) and Crimson Storm (18-10) take to the floor in the tournament’s opening game at 8:30 am.

Shorter coasted to a 74-47 win over Emmanuel in the South Region final last Wednesday to earn its first berth in the NCCAA Women’s Basketball Championship. The Lady Hawks are making their fourth straight appearance in a national tournament, having advanced to the NAIA Division I Women’s Basketball National Championship in each of their final three seasons as an NAIA member.

Southern Nazarene was granted the tournament’s lone at-large berth despite losing in the Central Region semifinals to eventual Central Region champion Oklahoma Christian. The Crimson Storm, who like Shorter are in transition from NAIA to NCAA Division II, are making their first appearance in the NCCAA Women’s Basketball Championship and are former members of the NAIA’s Sooner Athletic Conference.

Those making the trip to Winona Lake can purchase tickets on-site. Four-day passes are $30 and individual day passes are $10. For students and children, four-day passes are $15 and individual day passes are $5. Parking is free.