March 17, 2008

• 2008 NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Greensboro Regional

GREENSBORO, N.C. - For the sixth-straight year, the Atlantic Coast Conference will be represented by at least six teams in the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Field of 64. North Carolina, which picked up the school's fourth consecutive ACC Tournament crown, finished 30-2 and earned a No. 1 slot for the fourth consecutive year. Joining the Tar Heels as a No. 1 seed are the Maryland Terrapins, who concluded the season 30-3 overall, and 19-0 in College Park, Md.

Joining North Carolina and Maryland as representatives of the ACC are Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, and Virginia. The ACC was one of only three leagues to place at least six in this year's Big Dance.

In her first season as head coach of the Blue Devils, Joanne P. McCallie guided Duke to a 23-9 finish, winning seven of their last 10 games and advancing to the finals of the ACC Tournament. The Blue Devils earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will face No. 14 Murray State in first-round action in College Park, Md. Competing in the Oklahoma City region, the winner will advance to face either Arizona State or Temple, a team that the Blue Devils defeated earlier in the season.

In the New Orleans region, Sue Semrau's Florida State Seminoles make their eighth NCAA Tourney appearance and fourth straight. The `Noles wrapped up the regular season at 18-13, including a 10-5 non-conference mark. As a No. 11 seed, FSU will face Big Ten opponent Ohio State. The first-round contest against the No. 6 Buckeyes, who were co-champions of the Big Ten, will take place in Des Moines, Iowa. The winner will face No. 3 seed Oklahoma State or No. 14 seed East Tennessee State.

Georgia Tech, which won 22 games for the first time since joining the ACC and is just one victory shy of the school record, claimed a No. 10 seed in this year's NCAA Tournament. Also in Des Moines, Iowa, the Yellow Jackets will face No. 7 seed Iowa State, which finds itself in the tournament field for the second year in a row and the ninth time in the last 12 seasons. The winner of the Yellow Jackets and the Cyclones will advance to face No. 2 Rutgers or No. 15 Robert Morris.

North Carolina, which finished a perfect 17-0 against ACC competition this season, earned a No. 1 seed and will face No. 16 seed Bucknell in the Bison's second NCAA tourney showing. The winner of Bucknell, the 2008 Patriot League champions, and UNC will face No. 8 seed Georgia or No. 9 seed Iowa in second-round action of the New Orleans region. This first-round match-up will take place in Norfolk, Va.

Also making a showing in Norfolk is No. 4 seed Virginia, which earns its 22nd NCAA Tournament appearance, a mark that only five other programs have attained. The Cavaliers, who finished 23-9 overall and 12-4 against non-conference foes, will face No. 13 seed UC Santa Barbara. The Gauchos advance to the NCAA Tourney for the first time since 2005 after winning their 12th Big West Conference Championship. The winner will face No. 5 seed Old Dominion or No. 12 Liberty to advance to the Greensboro regional.

Rounding out the list of ACC contestants is No. 1 seed and 2006 NCAA Tournament Champion Maryland, which captured its second 30-win campaign and fourth 20-win outing. The Terrapins, who play host in the first and second rounds, face No. 16 seed Coppin State, the Mid-Eastern Conference's automatic bid. The winner advances to face either No. 8 seed Nebraska or No. 9 seed Xavier.

The four regional winners will meet in the NCAA Women's Final Four, April 6 and 8, at the St. Pete Times Forum (21,655) in Tampa, Fla. Specific game times will be released at a later date.