May 14, 2008

• 2008 ACC Softball Championship Photos (Available for Purchase)

GREENSBORO, N.C. - The Atlantic Coast Conference will be represented by four league institutions at four different NCAA Regional sites this weekend. Virginia Tech, the ACC Champion, heads to Knoxville, Tenn., while North Carolina, Florida State and Georgia Tech will compete in Chapel Hill, N.C., Tuscaloosa, Ala., and Gainesville, Fla., respectively.

The Hokies, who occupy the 16th spot in the latest ESPN.com/USA Softball National Poll after earning their second-straight ACC Championship last weekend in College Park, Md., open play Friday at 2:30 p.m. against Louisville. Currently 44-15 on the season, Virginia Tech has now earned a bid to each of the last four NCAA Softball Tournaments, and enters with a 3-6 record in NCAA play. In two all-time meetings with the Cardinals, the Hokies are 1-1, having split a pair of matchups in the Regional round of the 2006 NCAA Championship, also held in Knoxville. Should they defeat the Cardinals (30-21), the Hokies will take on either Tennessee or Winthrop Saturday at noon in a game that will be broadcast live on ESPN2.

The ACC's highest ranked team entering the week, North Carolina will host Georgia, Campbell and BYU at Chapel Hill's Anderson Stadium in Regional play starting this Thursday, May 15. The No. 13 Tar Heels open against BYU, which posted a 42-18 overall record and a 14-6 mark to take second-place in the Mountain West Conference, at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. UNC, which will make its sixth NCAA Tournament appearance in a row and the seventh in the last eight years on Thursday, holds an all-time record of 6-12 in NCAA play. Led by ACC Coach of the Year Donna J. Papa and Player of the Year Danielle Spaulding, the Heels will look to advance to the College World Series for the first time in school history in 2008.

Longtime head coach JoAnne Graf and the Seminoles will make their ninth consecutive NCAA showing against Jacksonville State Thursday at 4:00 p.m. in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Graf, who ranks first in ACC history with 842 career wins, led Florida State to another strong regular season in 2008, completing the year with a 36-25 overall record and a third-place finish in the ACC. The `Noles, who are one of just a few teams that can claim defeating a No. 1 ranked team this season after taking down Arizona State on March 20, are a perfect 4-0 against Jacksonville State in four previous meetings. Depending on the result of Thursday's game, FSU will take on either No. 3 national seed Alabama or Chattanooga on Friday.

Georgia Tech, currently 31-29 under first-year head coach Sharon Perkins, travels to Gainesville, Fla., where it will open at No. 1 national seed Florida on Friday at 6:00 p.m. After suffering through a difficult string of injuries to start the season, the Yellow Jackets finished strong over the last third of the year, posting 13 wins in their last 15 regular season games to become eligible for NCAA consideration. Tech, which is 12-12 all-time in NCAA play, has now advanced to the Tournament in each of the last seven years. The Yellow Jackets will face either Central Florida or South Florida on Saturday, depending on the outcome of their game against the Gators.

Regional winners will advance to NCAA Super Regionals, which will take place at campus sites on May 23-24. The 2008 NCAA College World Series will be held May 29-June 4 at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City, Okla.