University of Massachusets Athletics
Softball To Host NCAA Regional This Weekend
May 13, 2007 | Softball
May 13, 2007
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AMHERST, Mass. -- The Massachusetts Softball Team (37-12-1) will host a regional for the second straight season it was announced by the selection committed live on ESPNews Sunday afternoon. The Minutewomen are the No. 2 seed in the Amherst Regional and will face third-seeded Long Island (33-20) Friday at 4:30 PM. Oklahoma (52-6) is the top seed in the region and will play fourth-seeded Colgate (25-22) Friday at 2:00 PM. The Sooners are the No. 3 national seed. The regional is double-elimination and runs through Sunday at the UMass Softball Complex. The winner of the Amherst Regional will match up with the winner of the Carbondale, Ill., Regional between No. 14 DePaul, Mississippi Valley State, Southern Illinois and Missouri in the Super Regionals.
This is the 13th straight and 17th overall NCAA Tournament for the Minutewomen. That is tied for the seventh-most consecutive trips to the annual postseason event while tied for the 10th-most appearances ever. Last year, UMass hosted its first regional since 1999 and won three games in a row while advancing to the school's first-ever Super Regional and took eventual national runner-up Northwestern to a decisive third game of the best-of-three-game series.
UMass is now 26-33 (.441) all-time in the NCAA Tournament. The Minutewomen have advanced to the Women's College World Series three times, most recently in 1998. This is the 10th time that UMass has hosted a regional and it is 17-12 (.586) in those games.
Tickets for the Amherst Regional will go on sale through the UMass Athletic Ticket Office Monday morning at 9:00 AM ET. All session tickets are available for $20 for adults and $10 for UMass students and children 18 and under while individual day tickets will be sold for $10 for adults and $5 for UMass students and children 18 and under. Tickets are available at the ticket booths outside the UMass Softball Complex on game-day or by calling 1-866-UMASS-TIX. Tickets can also be purchased at the Mullins Center Box Office Monday-Thursday from 9:00 AM-5:00 PM.
The Minutewomen are coming off their 19th Atlantic 10 Championship over the weekend and are riding the nation's longest winning streak at 26 games. UMass has also won 32 games in a row at home, the longest active streak in the country. This is the second time that Oklahoma has travelled to Amherst for the NCAA Tournament. The Minutewomen defeated the Sooners twice in 1998 en route to the College World Series. The Minutewomen also travelled to Norman, Okla., for the 2001 regionals but did not face the host squad.
A tournament central button will be launched on www.umassathletics.com Monday morning and will be updated all week with information about the NCAA Softball Amherst Regional. Media information including radio broadcasts and potential live video will be released as soon as information becomes available.
2007 NCAA Softball Amherst Regional Schedule (all times are subject to change)
Friday, May 18
Game 1: #1 Oklahoma (52-6) vs. #4 Colgate (25-22) 2:00 PM
Game 2: #2 Massachusetts (37-12-1) vs. #3 Long Island (33-20) 4:30 PM
Saturday, May 19
Game 3: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 12:00 PM
Game 4: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 2:30 PM
Game 5: Loser Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4 5:00 PM
Sunday, May 20
Game 6: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5 12:00 PM
Game 7: Same teams (if necessary) 2:30 PM