HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College softball team learned the identity of its next opponent on Monday when the bracket for the NCAA Division III softball tournament was revealed. The Fords will begin regional play against Wheaton (Mass.) College on Friday at Montclair State University.

The four-team double-elimination regional in Montclair, N.J., which runs from Friday to Sunday, May 9-11, includes Haverford (27-9), Wheaton (30-10), Farmingdale State College (23-12) and the host Red Hawks (36-6).

The Fords punched their ticket to the NCAA tournament by sweeping through the Centennial Conference tournament on the way to the program's second title. Extending its program-record win streak to nine games, Haverford outscored the competition 19-8 over the course of the undefeated weekend that included two wins over host, and top seed, Muhlenberg College. 

Wheaton, which hit the 30-win mark for the 10th time in program history, earned one of the 19 at-large bids to the D-III tournament after falling to Smith College in the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) tournament.

Montclair, ranked fifth in the final National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) poll of the regular season, was also an at-large selection to the field. The Red Hawks will be making their sixth appearance in the NCAA regionals in the last eight years. Farmingdale State, champion of the Skyline Conference, is back in the national tournament for the fourth consecutive year.

This year's NCAA tournament will feature 62 teams competing for the national title. Four teams will compete at 14 regional sites and three teams will compete at two regional sites. The team advancing from each regional will compete in the super-regional round on May 16 and 17. The finals, hosted by The University of Texas at Tyler, will be held May 22-27 at Suddenlink Field in Tyler, Texas. All rounds will use a double-elimination format.

The winner of the Montclair regional advances to the super regionals against the winner of the regional hosted by Kean University. Kean's bracket includes Husson University (30-10), Keene State College (19-17), Lebanon Valley College (32-4) and the host Cougars (32-11).