South Carolina softball reaches NCAA Tournament, learns regional placement
The SEC Tournament is in the rear-view mirror for the South Carolina softball team. Now, it can look ahead at the NCAA Tournament and the possibility of playing in the Women’s College Series.
The Gamecocks learned their NCAA Tournament during the NCAA Softball Selection Show, which aired on ESPN2. South Carolina will enter the tournament as a participant in the Durham Regional, which is hosted by Duke. The team will take on Utah in its first matchup of the tournament.
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The Gamecocks have now reached the NCAA Tournament in two consecutive seasons for the first time since 2018 and 2019. This year’s tournament entry marked South Carolina’s 24th in program history during the NCAA Tournament era, which began in 1982.
South Carolina heads into the tournament with a 34-22 overall record, which includes an 8-16 mark against SEC opponents. The Gamecocks are currently unranked in the D1 Softball poll but have been amongst the nation’s top 25 teams throughout the season.
The NCAA Softball RPI ranking system lists South Carolina as the No. 11 team in the SEC and No. 26 team overall. The Gamecocks’ strength of schedule was ranked No. 15 in the country, which is a testament to the SEC’s overall quality as a conference this season.
That quality was on full display during the SEC Tournament, in which South Carolina played two games. The Gamecocks picked up an 8-4 upset win over Mississippi State in the first round. But the team was eliminated in the quarterfinals, falling 3-2 to Texas A&M via a walk-off.
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Durham Regional teams and schedule
Duke, Utah and Morgan State are the three teams which, along with South Carolina, make up the Durham Regional.
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Duke (47-6, 20-4 ACC) are hosting a regional for the third time in program history. The Blue Devils swept both the ACC Tournament and regular season championships this year.
Utah (34-20, 10-13 Pac-12) finished sixth in the Pac-12 regular season standings. The Utes fell just short of claiming a second consecutive conference championship in a 2-1 defeat to UCLA on Saturday.
Morgan State (35-18, 18-3 MEAC) earned the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference’s automatic bid to the tournament for the second time in as many years.
The Gamecocks will begin their NCAA Tournament journey against Utah on Friday. The game will air on ESPNU at noon. First-round matchups will run through the weekend, and the Durham Regional champion will be crowned on Sunday.
