Princeton University Athletics
Tigers versus Tigers as Princeton Softball is Ticketed for Baton Rouge NCAA Regional
May 14, 2006 | Softball
May 14, 2006
PRINCETON, N.J. - The announcement for which the Princeton softball team has been waiting nearly three long weeks finally came Sunday afternoon. The 16-time Ivy League champions will be headed to Baton Rouge, La., to compete in the program's seventh NCAA tournament. The Tigers are paired with Louisiana-Lafayette (48-10), North Carolina State (48-19) and host Louisiana State (51-12) in the regional and will face LSU Friday at 7 p.m. CT to begin the double-elimination format.
The regional is Princeton's fourth in five years under head coach Maureen Barron, the first coach to take Princeton to four NCAAs. In her first trip in 2002, the Tigers went to Minnesota, followed by competitions in Arizona in 2003 and 2005. As a player, the 1997 Princeton graduate traveled to Louisiana-Lafayette in 1994 and Massachusetts in 1996 while hosting a regional in 1995. Barron has been a part of all seven NCAA appearances.
Princeton will be heading to Louisiana for the first time since that 1994 regional and the Tigers will face LSU for the first time. Princeton has faced the other two teams in recent seasons. The Tigers opened the 2005 season with a 1-0 win over N.C. State in Greenville, N.C., and lost 7-0 to Louisiana-Lafayette in Fullerton, Calif., in 2004. The Ragin' Cajuns also took two at Princeton in 1997 and knocked Princeton out of the Women's College World Series in 1996 in what was the Tigers last WCWS game since.
The winner of the four-team regional will advance to a best-of-three "super-regional" against the winner of the Tucson Regional for the right to play in the eight-team Women's College World Series. LSU received the No. 15 seed out of the 16 seeded teams.
Princeton finished 3-3 against teams included in the 2006 tournament field. The Tigers defeated North Carolina and Southern Utah while taking one of three from Lehigh and falling narrowly to Stanford. "We're all very excited to be headed to Louisiana. It's an honor to be able to represent the Ivy League against such great competition and we're looking forward to the weekend," Barron said.
Princeton finished the regular season 34-17 overall and 12-2 in the Ivy League, wrapping up the conference crown in its final league game April 24 at Dartmouth and clinching the automatic NCAA bid. Friday, eight Princeton players earned All-Ivy honors while senior Erin Snyder was the Ivy League Pitcher of the Year for the second straight season and outfielder Kathryn Welch was the Ivy League Rookie of the Year.