Bracket Set for 2008 ACC Softball Championship :: Tar Heels earn top seed for first time since 2000.

May 4, 2008

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Official seedings for the 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference Softball Championship, set to begin this Thursday, May 8, in Robert E. Taylor Stadium on the campus of the University of Maryland, were finalized Sunday afternoon with the completion of the ACC regular season. North Carolina, which recorded an 18-2 mark in conference play this year, enters the Championship as the league's top seed for the first time since 2000.

The Tar Heels (49-9-1, 18-2), who have already set a school-record for wins during the 2008 season, will begin their drive for the school's second-ever ACC Championship with a first-round matchup against No. 8 seed Virginia (15-37, 6-15) at 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 8. North Carolina swept the Cavaliers, 3-0, in Charlottesville, Va., in their only series of the regular season on April 12-13.

Earning the No. 2 seed for this year's tournament are the reigning ACC-champion Virginia Tech Hokies (41-15, 16-5). Led by 2007 ACC Coach of the Year Scot Thomas and pitcher Angela Tincher, the league's all-time leader in wins, strikeouts and innings pitched, the Hokies will take on seventh-seeded Maryland (36-21, 7-14) in Thursday's opening round.

Seeded three and four, respectively, are Florida State (36-25, 12-9) and Georgia Tech (30-28, 9-11). The 10-time ACC-champion Seminoles will open against No. 6 Boston College (31-30, 7-14), which earned the sixth seed by way of the head-to-head tiebreaker against Maryland, in Thursday's first game at 10:00 a.m., while the Yellow Jackets will open against fifth-seeded NC State (29-26, 8-13) at 5:30 p.m. Thursday evening.

The first- and second-rounds of the 2008 ACC Softball Championship will take place on Thursday, May 8, and Friday, May 9, respectively, with semifinal matchups on Saturday. The 2008 ACC Champion will be determined in Sunday's final, set to begin at 12:00 p.m.

Coverage of the Championship's first three days will be available live throughout the week on ACC Select. Sunday's final will be televised regionally on FSN South, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic and New England Sports Network (NESN).