WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

NORTHFIELD, Vt. - The Norwich women's basketball team has received a bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament for the second consecutive year. The Cadets will meet the Fitchburg State Falcons in the opening round on Friday, March 2, at 6 p.m. The game will be played at the University of Southern Maine, host of the four-team regional, which will take on Williams College in the late game at 8 p.m.

Norwich enters the tournament with a mark of 24-3 following a 63-55 loss to Emmanuel College in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament championship game on Saturday. The Cadets received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament along with 19 other teams from automatic-qualifying conferences that are not the conference champion, as well as independent institutions. Norwich opened the season with 10 consecutive wins and posted a 10-1 record in GNAC play.

"I am so proud of my team and what they have done this year," said NU Head Coach Mark Miller. "They have helped give Norwich University and the state of Vermont some exciting times. Our players are looking forward to the NCAA Tournament and we have been talking about this since the first day I walked on campus."

Fitchburg State received an automatic bid to the 63-team tournament after winning its first Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference (MASCAC) title on Saturday. The Falcons defeated Salem State in the championship game, 66-45, which boosted their record to 25-2. Fitchburg set school records for wins in a single season (25), longest winning streak (23 games), and best start to a season (23-1).

Norwich is making its second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament, while Fitchburg is making its first trip to the "Big Dance." The Cadets advanced to the second round of the 2006 tournament after posting a 76-63 win over Maine-Farmington in the opening round. Norwich lost to host Southern Maine in the second round, 72-42.