NCAA seeding revealed May 15

An anxious Princeton softball team waits to hear its fate in the next few days as the NCAA Tournament bracket is revealed. The unranked Tigers will learn everything when the seedings are announced on ESPNews at 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 15. Until then, Princeton (35-18 overall, 10-1 Ivy League) is gearing up to push its successful season to a new level.

This season, the tournament is going to work slightly differently than it has in the past. The format is like the men's baseball tournament, where 64 teams will compete at 16 sites in the first round. Each set of four teams will play through a double elimination format until a regional champion is decided. These regional champions will move onto the second round, in which 16 teams vie to advance. Eight of those squads will move onto the World Series, to be played in Oklahoma City, Ok.

This year, the Tigers gained some experience with top national competitors when the team went on its West Coast trip earlier in the season during spring break. Stanford, currently ranked No. 5 in the latest NCAA poll, was shocked by a 2-0 loss to Princeton. The Tigers' upset of the Cardinal was something not many Division I teams can claim to their credit. Given Princeton's success against such a strong team, the Tigers are excited to play in the upcoming tourney and confident in their chance of advancing.

"The reason we play such a competitive schedule is because we expect to play the same caliber teams in the post-season," head coach Maureen Barron said. "We know we can compete with any team in the country."

After all, Princeton has no dearth of talent. This past week, Ivy League honors were given out for the year, and several Tigers received due awards. The two that came as no surprise were Pitcher of the Year and Rookie of the Year, which went to junior pitcher Erin Snyder and freshman pitcher Kristen Schaus, respectively. They both posted sub-2.00 earned run averages and 200-plus strikeouts. Each was a mainstay of Princeton's defense this season.

Senior outfielder Melissa Finley received her fourth All-Ivy accolade, posting strong numbers, leading the team in batting average (.321), slugging (.528) and doubles (13). Honorable-mention awards went to freshman first baseman Beth Dalmut, junior shortstop Christina Cobb-Adams and junior Amanda Erickson.

Pitching was obviously a major reason for the Tigers' success, but even in the few instances where pitching was not at its best, Princeton's bats could bail the team out of trouble in the offensive side of the inning. Every Tiger made contributions, with almost every player in the lineup hitting at least one home run. The lineup was very versatile throughout.

"The pitching was phenomenal, and it really kept us in some games — but it wasn't just one or two people, it was a total team effort," Barron said. "We're small in numbers, but our flexibility provided our depth."

Princeton's tournament run started in 1994-1996, when the Tigers won the Ivy League title and were able to advance to the World Series twice in 1995 and 1996. In each year, Princeton dropped two games and was eliminated after advancing past two other teams.

The Tigers last reached the NCAA tournament in 2003, where they suffered two losses to South Carolina and Boston College and were knocked out of the tournament. The only year Princeton had made the tournament was in 2002.

In the past three years, the championship has been dominated by California teams, as UC-Berkeley won in 2002. The Golden Bears were the runner-up in both 2003 and 2004, when UCLA took the title. Currently, the No. 12 Bruins are lower in the rankings than in the past, but No. 2 California is still a powerhouse. The top five teams in the country are Michigan, California, Arizona, Texas A&M and Stanford, respectively.

The Tigers hope to ride their pitching and clutch offense deep into the tournament against these top-caliber teams. For now, though, Princeton will be glued to the TV on Sunday when the seedings are announced.