Courtesy: Boston University Athletic Communications
Boston University's softball team (34-20), fresh off winning its eighth America East championship, has learned its NCAA fate and will play No. 13 Arizona State, the 2008 NCAA national champion, on Friday (May 21) at 5 p.m. on the first day of the double-elimination NCAA Regional. UMass and Long Island will also play in the regional, which will be hosted by the Minutewomen.
Amidst one of their best season in school history, the Terriers earned the America East Conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament after successfully repeating as the conference champions. Senior hurler Cassidi Hardy, the tourney's Most Outstanding Player and league's Pitcher of the Year, again stepped up for the Terriers in the postseason, picking up three victories for BU with a 0.78 ERA and 34 strikeouts. RECAP
The Terriers first-round opponent will be the 13th-ranked Sun Devils, who have advanced to the College World Series in each of the last four seasons and were the national champions in 2008. This season, the Sun Devils have gone 41-15 with a 10-11 record in the Pac-10. Katelyn Boyd has been the team's leading batter with a .403 BA with 47 RBIs, 15 home runs and 26 stolen bases.
Friday's NCAA tournament appearance is the second for head coach Shawn Rychcik and fifth overall for the program.