LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — The University of Louisville softball team is headed back to the NCAA Tournament.
The Cardinals learned Sunday night they had earned an at-large berth in the 64-team field and will travel to Lincoln, Nebraska, for regional play hosted by the University of Nebraska.
Louisville (44-12, 18-6 ACC) will open the tournament Friday at 4 p.m. ET against Grand Canyon University on ESPNU in the double-elimination Lincoln Regional.
Top-seeded Nebraska will face South Dakota in the other opening-round matchup. The regional winner advances to a Super Regional.
“We’re excited about the opportunity,” Louisville coach Holly Aprile said. “We’re just going to go attack it like we have throughout the whole season here. We’re going to try to run. We’re going to try to hit the ball hard. We’re just going to play hard overall.”
This marks the 16th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history for Louisville and the first since 2023.
The Cardinals enter postseason play after one of the best regular seasons in school history. Louisville tied for third in the ACC race and advanced to the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament, where it fell to Stanford in extra innings after defeating NC State in the opening round.
Louisville’s offense has been among the nation’s most productive all season.
Left fielder Madison Pickens leads the Cardinals with a .470 batting average, 73 RBIs and 10 home runs. Center fielder Chelsea Mack is hitting .445, while catcher Bri Despines is batting .410 with 70 RBIs and a team-best 11 home runs.
All three have started every game this season.
“We need to execute our offense, pass the bat,” Aprile said. “That’s one of the big things we’ve done. We’ve been able to put a lot of offensive pressure on teams, and those are the things we’re going to look to continue to do.”
Grand Canyon arrives in Lincoln with a 52-8 record and the Mountain West Conference Tournament championship. The Lopes are making their fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance after rallying from a nine-run deficit to defeat Nevada in the conference title game.
Sophomore pitcher Oakley Vickers leads GCU with a 2.08 ERA, while Jada Cooper, Sydney McCray and Addison Shifflett each hit .350 or better. McCray is also a perfect 38-for-38 in stolen-base attempts this season.
On the mound, Alyssa Zabaia and Brooke Gray have recorded 14 wins each, while Anna Wise (8-3) has a team-best 3.18 earned run average.
The matchup will be the first meeting between Louisville and Grand Canyon.
Louisville is 17-32 all-time in NCAA Tournament play and is still seeking the program’s first Super Regional appearance.
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