May 16, 2004
Urbana, Ill. -
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Illinois' tough schedule and hot play down the stretch were rewarded on Sunday as the Illini earned the No. 2 seed in the Waco (Texas) Softball Regional. The Illini (41-19-1) will open play Thursday at 12:30 p.m. vs. No. 7 seed UT-San Antonio (37-15).
LSU, the third-ranked team in the nation, is the top seed at the eight-team regional. The tournament consists of 64 teams divided in eight eight-team regionals. Each regional, which runs through Sunday, is a double-elimination format with the winner of each advancing to the Women's College World Series May 27-31 in Oklahoma City, Okla.
The Illini have some familiarity with teams in the region, including top seed LSU. The Illini were the co-champions of the LSU Tiger Classic, defeating LSU in the semifinals, 7-2, on Feb. 8. The Tigers had defeated the Illini, 7-3 in pool play. Illinois has defeated eighth-seed Texas-Corpus Christi twice (1-0 and 7-0) at the Texas A&M Aggie Classic on Feb. 20-22. The Illini lost to third-seeded Baylor, 2-1 on March 7 at the Speedline Tournament.
A total of 16 Illinois opponents made the NCAA Tournament with a total of six teams making it from the Big Ten. Michigan is the top seed in the Ann Arbor, Mich., Regional, Northwestern is the No. 3 seed at the Tucson, Ariz., Regional; Iowa is the No. 5 seed at the Lincoln, Neb., Regional; Big Ten Tournament champion Michigan State is the No. 5 seed at the Athens, Ga., Regional; and Ohio State is the No. 6 seed at the Tallahassee, Fla., Regional.
Illinois is making its second straight NCAA appearance. The Illini went 1-2 at the Tuscaloosa, Ala., Regional last season, defeating Georgia Tech, 5-4, in the first round.
"We know that it will be a challenge, and we learned over the weekend (at the Big Ten Tournament) that anything can happen in a tournament situation," said Illinois Head Coach Terri Sullivan. "We're excited about where we are going with familiarity with some of the teams. Honestly, though, we would have felt confident wherever we had gone because we believe when we bring our 'A' game, we can beat any team in the country."
