SOUTH BEND, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame softball team was selected to participate in the 2022 NCAA Division I Softball Championship. The 18th-ranked Fighting Irish were selected as the two-seed in the NCAA Evanston Regional, hosted by the Northwestern University Wildcats. Northwestern finished the 2022 season 40-10 overall and were 19-4 in the Big Ten Conference.
Joining the Irish and Wildcats in Evanston will be the fourth-seeded Oakland Golden Grizzlies, winners of the Horizon League, and the three-seeded McNeese Cowgirls of the Southland Conference. The Irish and McNeese will play in the first round of the double elimination four-team regional tournament.
The McNeese Cowgirls finished the regular season with a 38-19 overall record and were 15-3 in the Southland Conference. The Cowgirls won the Southland Conference’s automatic bid after defeating Northwestern State and Southeastern twice in the Southland Championship Tournament. McNeese closed the season winning seven straight and were 23-10 at their home stadium. In neutral site games, McNeese is 1-3. Notre Dame and McNeese have met once in program history, with the Irish winning 6-1, March 1st, 2003 at the Louisiana Classic, hosted by Louisiana.
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The Irish will compete in the NCAA Regional Friday, May 20th.