BLOOMINGTON, Ill. -- For the second straight year and for the fourth time since 1994, the Illinois Wesleyan softball team will be represented in the NCAA Division III regional tournament.

The 36-12 Titans are the No. 2 seed in the regional that starts Friday at North Central College in Naperville, Ill., and will play the tournament's second game at 12:30 p.m. against No. 3 seed University of Chicago, which is 26-10.

The opening game will pit No. 4 seed Benedictine (33-12) vs. No. 5 seed Carroll [Wis.] (23-11). The day's third game has the host school and No. 1 seed, North Central (41-8), playing the winner of the Benedictine/Carroll game, followed by the loser of the IWU/Chicago game meeting the loser of the Benedictine/Carroll contest.

Play will continue Saturday and Sunday, with a rain date of Monday.

IWU, which is 2-6 in three previous NCAA appearances, earned an automatic bid into the NCAA event by virtue of winning the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin tournament last weekend.

Last season the Titans won two games and lost two in the Division III regional at Muskingum College in New Concord, Ohio. IWU had wins over Anderson and Wittenberg and lost to Anderson and Muskingum. In 1994 the Titans lost in the first round to defending champion Central (Iowa), 6-0, and Simpson, 5-0. In 1996, IWU also met a defending champion in its first game and was shutout by Chapman, 3-0, before bowing to Calvin, 5-0.

The NCAA Division III regional schedule (seeds in parentheses):

FRIDAY, MAY 11
10 a.m. - Game 1 - Benedictine (33-12, #4 seed) vs. Carroll [Wis.] (23-11, #5 seed)
12:30 p.m. - Game 2 - Illinois Wesleyan (36-12, #2 seed) vs. Chicago (26-10, #3 seed)
3 p.m. - Game 3 - North Central (41-8 #1 seed) vs. Winner Game 1
5:30 p.m. - Game 4 - Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2

SATURDAY, MAY 12
10 a.m. - Game 5 - Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 3
12:30 p.m. - Game 6 - Winner Game 4 vs. Loser Game 3
3 p.m. - Game 7 - Loser Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6

SUNDAY, MAY 13
12 p.m. - Game 8 - Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 7
2:30 p.m. - Game 9 - necessary only if Winner Game 7 also wins Game 8
 

INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Division III Women's Softball Committee has announced the teams selected for the Division III Softball Championship.

The Division III championship provides for a field of 43 teams. Five teams will compete at five sites and six teams will compete at three sites for a total of eight first-round sites. All first rounds will use a double-elimination format.

Five-team first rounds will be held May 11-13, on the campuses of competing institutions, with the rain date being May 14. Six-team first rounds will be held May 11-14, on the campuses of competing institutions, with the rain date being May 14. Finals, hosted by the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire, will be held May 17-21, at Carson Park in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

Conferences receiving automatic qualifications are:
Centennial Conference - Muhlenberg
City University of New York Athletic Conference - Hunter
College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin - Illinois Wesleyan
Commonwealth Conference - Moravian
Commonwealth Coast Conference - Roger Williams
Dixie Intercollegiate Athletic Conference - Christopher Newport
Freedom Conference - King's (Pennsylvania)
Great Northeast Athletic Conference - Pine Manor
Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference - Manchester
Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference - Wartburg
Lake Michigan Conference - Marian (Wisconsin)
Little East Conference - Western Connecticut State
Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference - Bridgewater State
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Conference - Alma
Midwest Conference - Carroll (Wisconsin)
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference - St. Mary's (Minnesota)
New England Small College Athletic Conference - Tufts
New England Women's and Men's Conference - Wheaton (Massachusetts)
New Jersey Athletic Conference - Rowan
North Coast Athletic Conference - Denison
Northwest Conference - Pacific Lutheran
Ohio Athletic Conference - Muskingum
Old Dominion Athletic Conference - Roanoke
Pennsylvania Athletic Conference - Cabrini
Skyline Conference - Mount St. Mary (New York)
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference - LaVerne
Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference - Trinity (Texas)
St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference - Webster
State University of New York Athletic Conference - Oneonta State
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference - Wisconsin-Stevens Point

SITES:
*Indicates host institution

Seed No. 1 - Winner of first round at Pella, Iowa.
                1. La Verne (32-8)
                2. *Central (Iowa) (35-8)
                3. Pacific Lutheran (23-8)
                4. Webster (36-7)
                5. Trinity (Texas) (29-8)

Seed No. 2 - Winner of first round at Waverly, Iowa.
                1. *Wartburg (34-7-1)
                2. St. Mary's (Minnesota) (31-6)
                3. St. Thomas (Minnesota) (33-7)
                4. Wisconsin-Stevens Point (25-11)
                5. Marian (Wisconsin) (21-13)

Seed No. 3 - Winner of first round at Granville, Ohio.
                1. *Denison (30-5)
                2. Muskingum (40-6)
                3. Alma (34-10) 4. Emory (36-11)
                5. Case Western Reserve (29-8)
                6. Manchester (15-23)

Seed No. 4 - Winner of first round at Salem, Virginia.
                1. Salisbury State (34-7)
                2. *Roanoke (38-8)
                3. Christopher Newport (35-7)
                4. York (Pennsylvania) (31-5)
                5. Muhlenberg (23-15)

Seed No. 5 - Winner of first round at Naperville, Illinois.
                1. *North Central (41-8)
                2. Illinois Wesleyan (36-12)
                3. Chicago (26-10)
                4. Benedictine (Illinois) (33-12)
                5. Carroll (Wisconsin) (23-11)

Seed No. 6 - Winner of first round at Wayne, New Jersey.
                1. Rowan (33-9)
                2. Cabrini (40-3)
                3. *William Paterson (33-7)
                4. Moravian (32-10)
                5. Hunter (18-14)
                6. Mount St. Mary (New York) (17-8)

Seed No. 7 - Winner of first round at Bridgewater, Massachusetts.
                1. *Bridgewater State (31-10-1)
                2. Wheaton (Massachusetts) (36-6)
                3. Tufts (26-9-1)
                4. Western Connecticut State (34-2)
                5. Roger Williams (26-8-1)
                6. Pine Manor

Seed No. 8 - Winner of first round at Ithaca, New York.
                1. Oneonta State (35-8)
                2. Rochester Institute of Technology (32-7)
                3. *Ithaca (28-12)
                4. St. John Fisher (28-9)
                5. King's (Pennsylvania) (27-10)
 

1994 (0-2)
lost to Central (Iowa), 6-0 [Central was defending champion]
lost to Simpson, 5-0

1996 (0-2)
lost to Chapman, 3-0 [Chapman was defending champion and went on to finish second in 1996]
lost to Calvin, 5-0

2000 (2-2)
defeated Anderson, 6-4
lost to Muskingum, 4-2
defeated Wittenberg, 5-4
lost to Anderson, 5-4