Cardinals and Bombers to Host NCAA Regionals
BRACKET
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The nationally ranked St. John Fisher College Cardinals and Ithaca College Bombers will be two of 16 schools to host a regional pod as announced by the NCAA on Monday. In all 62 teams make up the field vying for the Division III Softball National Championship.
FISHER
Fisher, which is ranked sixth in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll, is one of 16 teams that earned the right to host an NCAA regional pod after winning their fifth Empire 8 Conference crown over the weekend by way of a 2-1 decision over Ithaca College.
The Cardinals will host three other teams in a double elimination bracket with the winner moving on to Super Regionals next weekend. Fisher (36-6) will take on Penn. St.-Behrend (26-12) on Friday while William Patterson (28-11) will duke it out with Manhattanville (30-13) on Friday as well. The regional will continue on Saturday and Sunday at Fisher's Softball Complex.
Fisher will be making its seventh appearance in the NCAA Championship in the last 10 years while in 2016, the Cardinals made their first-ever trip to the Division III World Series where it finished third overall.
ITHACA
Ithaca, who is ranked 21st nationally coming into the week, will face Penn St.-Berks in the opening round of competition. The Nittany Lions come out of the NEAC and are 28-7 on the year.
Rounding out the regional teams are Ramapo College and Susquehanna University. Ramapo is 29-9 on the season, while Susquehanna is 29-14 in its 2017 campaign. The games will be on Friday, May 12 and will continue throughout the weekend.
The Bombers are coming off a regular season where they finished 31-10 overall and 12-2 in Empire 8 play. Ithaca clinched its 13th number one seed in the conference tournament, but fell in the game seven final against Fisher.
Ithaca is making its 28th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, going 74-56 over 130 games, including the 2002 season when the Bombers took home the title. The last quest for the national championship came last season when the Bombers made it to their 11th Super Regional, falling to Rowan University.