Virginia Makes History with First NCAA Tournament Bid

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CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia softball team made history Sunday night earning its first bid in the NCAA Tournament. The Cavaliers will play Louisville (39-17) at 4 p.m. Friday in the Knoxville, Tenn., regional, hosted by the University of Tennessee.

“It’s been 30 years in the making,” said Virginia head coach Eileen Schmidt. “I think its great we have the opportunity to play for the national championship. There are 290 schools and we are one of the top 64.”

The Lady Vols (42-13), the No. 15 national seed, will play Ball State (43-14) in the second game at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

The Cavaliers (33-21, 13-7 ACC) set a school record with 13 conference victories en route to a second-place finish in the eight-team league standings. It was the highest finish since Virginia placed second in 1997, then a five-league team. The ACC earned five bids to the 2010 NCAA softball championships.

The bid for the Cavaliers marks yet another milestone. The softball team became the 25th program at the university to receive an invitation to NCAA postseason competition. All 25 programs currently sponsored by Virginia have earned bids to NCAA play.

Knoxville Regional – May 21-23 at Knoxville, Tennessee

Friday, May 21
4 p.m. Louisville vs. Virginia (Game One)
6:30 p.m. Ball State vs. No. 15 seed Tennessee (Game Two)

Saturday, May 22
1 p.m. Winner Game One/Winner Game Two (Game Three)
3:30 p.m. Loser Game One/Loser Game Two (Game Four)
6 p.m. Loser Game Three/Winner Game Four (Game Five)

Sunday, May 23
1 p.m. Winner Game Three/Winner Game Five (Game Six)
3:30 p.m. Rematch of Game Six