From Emory University Athletics

The No. 9-ranked Emory softball team has been chosen as one of 62 teams to compete in the 2016 NCAA Division III Championships. The Eagles will open the postseason travelling to Berry College to take part in the Mount Berry Regional this Friday through Sunday (May 13-15).  All games will be contested at Ford Field on the Berry campus.

Mount Berry NCAA Softball Regional Website

The Eagles of head coach Penny Siqueiros, 40-4 on the year, will be making the program's sixth consecutive and 14^th overall trip to the NCAAs in the 18-year history of the program.  Emory's opening foe in the double-elimination event will be No. 7 Birmingham Southern College (36-8) in a scheduled 1:00 pm start on Friday.  Following that contest will be No. 4-ranked and host Berry University (36-6) battling Piedmont College (29-13) at 3:30 pm.   A schedule of this weekend's game is listed below.

Friday, May 13
Game 1 – Birmingham Southern vs. Emory  (1:00 pm)
Game 2 – Berry College vs. Piedmont (3:30 pm)

Saturday, May 14
Game 3 – Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 (11:00 am)
Game 4 – Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 (1:30 pm)
Game 5- Winner of Game 4 vs. Loser of Game 3 (4:00 pm)

Sunday, May 15
Game 6 – Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 5 (Noon)
Game 7 – (if necessary): Winner game 6 vs. loser game 6 --  (2:30 pm)

Emory captured an at-large bid to the national tournament, and this weekend's trip to Berry will snap a two-year streak of hosting the opening rounds of the postseason.

The Panthers of Birmingham Southern earned an at-large berth to the tourney after finishing runner-up to Berry College in the Southern Athletic Association Championships. BSC's 36 wins ties a school record.  Head Coach Kimball Cassady is in her sixth campaign calling the shots for the Panthers and checks into the weekend with a school ledger of 186-72-1.

Berry rides a hot streak into the postseason with victories in its last 15 outings.  The Vikings, winners of the Southern Athletic Association tournament title and regular-season co-champs, are guided by seventh-year head coach Cori Thiermann who has chalked up an impressive slate of 193-83.  BC's 36 wins represents a school season record.  Berry is making its second straight trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Piedmont heads to the national tournament after winning the USA South Conference regular season title going 16-4 in league play. Head Coach Terry Martin, now in his 18^thseason, is the only coach in program history and starts the weekend with a slate of 444-280.  The will be the Lions' fifth NCAA trip in the past seven years.

NOTES:  Emory posts an all-time record of 8-4 vs. Birmingham, though the Panthers swept a doubleheader over the Eagles earlier this year (Apr. 9) by 6-4, and 4-1 scores … Friday's contest will represent the first time that Emory and BSC have met in the NCAA Tournament … Emory's 40 wins heading into the postseason represents the fourth time in program history that it has reached or surpassed that plateau and the 14^th time that it has notched 30 or more triumphs … The Eagles have launched a total of 45 home runs this year, good for second place on the program's seasonal chart,  behind only the 47 round trippers that the 2014 squad socked …Through May 5, Emory ranked 7^th in D-III with an average of 1.02 home runs per game … Emory has 84 doubles this year, the fifth-highest seasonal standard in school annals … The Eagles hold down the No. 28 slot among D-III programs in doubles per game (1.91 dpg) … Emory has collected 10 or more hits on 22 occasions this year … Emory is No. 1 in the University Athletic Association and 7^th  on the national scene in slugging percentage (.549) … Emory has an all-time record of 37-27 in NCAA Tournament play … Emory stands 6-5 all-time vs. Berry with the last meeting taking place during the 2015 NCAA Regionals in Atlanta with Emory's 4-2 win in eight innings enabling to capture the regional crown …  … Emory has played a total of 13 games against eight teams in this year's field – Agnes Scott  (2-0),  Birmingham Southern (0-2),  DePauw (1-0), Lake Forest (2-0), DePauw (1-0), Rochester (2-0),  Rowan (1-0), Salisbury (0-1) and Washington University (2-0) fashioning a 10-3 won-lost ledger in those contests … Penny Siqueiros is in her 18^th year as the head coach at Emory and owns a school and career record of 600-169-1 … Sophomore Janelle Turnquest (Austin, TX), a First Team All-University Athletic Association, member, and freshman Lana Herrmann(Riverside, IL), each have hit a team-high nine home runs, with that total tied for sixth on the school's seasonal ladder and tied for 37^th in the Division III ranks this year … Turnquest also tops the team with 17 games of two or more RBIs, and her 56 ribbies on the year leads the UAA, stands third nationally and is the fifth-highest seasonal mark in school history … Senior Alyssa Pollard (Knoxville, TN), a First Team All-UAA pick, has registered a team-best 17 multi-hit contests … Pollard will enter the NCAA Regionals in the No. 12 spot on the school's all-time list in hitting (.372, 178-478) … Senior Melody Carter (Slidell, LA)is No. 2 in the conference and third nationally with 55 RBIs, fifth best on the Emory seasonal chart … Emory leads the UAA in hitting with a .355 mark, good for 19th nationally … Junior pitcher Brittany File (Carmel, CA) garnered First Team All-UAA acclaim and was named the UAA's Player of the Year, closing out the regular season with a 30-2 record, with her victory total leading all D-III players (through May 5) and establishing a school record ... File has struck out a school-record 273 batters, tops in the UAA and second in D-III ... File's average of 10.9 strikeouts per seven innings leads the league and is 2nd nationally, and her ERA of 1.24 over 175 1/3 innings stands 26th among all D-III hurlers … File will enter the postseason not having allowed a run over her last 35 2/3 innings of work … Sophomore Ashley Powers (Fayetteville, GA) owns a 15-game hitting streak, the longest by an Emory player this year.