NAMPA, Idaho – Whenever the Williams clan gets together, a game of softball seems to pop up.

At barbecues or picnics, informal or formal, when Northwest Nazarene University junior Anna Williams and her extended family are together a bat and a ball are not far away.

From the time she was a baby being held in the stands watching her mom, dad, aunts, uncles and grandpa play slow pitch while her grandma kept score, Williams has been near the game she loves.

"My grandpa coached a slow pitch team and all my aunts and uncles and older cousins would play slow pitch," Williams said. "I just have memories of being at the park with my cousins just watching. When we would have family get-togethers, we would play softball in the field. Looking back at memories of my family, softball or baseball was always there."

From those slow-pitch games, Williams has advanced to the collegiate diamond and now the NCAA Division II National Tournament.

The Nighthawks star outfielder was named the MVP of the GNAC Conference Tournament, the newcomer of the year for the GNAC and made second team all-conference.

"What makes Anna so good is her personality," NNU catcher Lisa Sylvester said. "She is self-driven, hard-working, dedicated and is willing to go fight for anyone on our team."

The Nighthawks (31-21) play No. 1 seed Chico State (50-3) at 3:30 p.m. MDT on Thursday in Chico, Calif., in the first round of their west regional. It is a double elimination regional with Cal Baptist and UC San Diego in the other matchup.

Williams is a big reason why the Nighthawks are in the national tournament for the first time.

The transfer from Walla Walla Community College and Filer, Idaho, native, is batting .358 with a team-leading 10 home runs and 38 RBIs despite missing eight games.

Before coming to NNU she played all over the field at Filer High and Walla Walla, including pitcher and catcher. She played some first base during the fall exhibition season, but was moved to the outfield for her NNU career.

When starting center fielder Cassidy Fifield suffered a season-ending injury at the end of the regular season, Williams moved to center field for the conference tournament and made plenty of key defensive plays.

"I just knew that I had big shoes to fill with Cassidy gone," Williams said. "One thing I kept telling myself on the bus was to think what Cassidy does and to be Cassidy out there.

"The biggest difference is the angles. The ball comes straight at you … the other outfielders (Lily Paschal and Ivy Hommel) were great and talked the whole time to help me out."

Williams also shined with her bat at the GNAC tournament, driving in a run in the opening win, hitting a two-run home run and a two-run double in the semifinal and then hitting a leadoff homer that was the only run scored in the championship game. She drove in six of NNU's eight runs in the three wins.

And this time it was her family in the stands watching her.

Her mom Jenny, and sisters, Lea and Katie, were in the stands in Portland watching. Her grandparents have also attended games this season in Nampa.

"It is so cool," said Lea Williams, who played college softball for College of Idaho in Caldwell. "I don't know if words can explain it. After she hit her two home runs and got MVP, you are so overcome by emotion and excitement."

From the family softball games to the national tournament, Williams now gets a chance to live out a dream.

"It is rewarding," she said, "just knowing that I am accomplishing what I set out to do when I was 10 years old.

"To finally be champions, it still hasn't quite hit me yet."