BUIES CREEK, N.C.-Atlantic Sun Conference champion Campbell University will travel to Chapel Hill, N.C. to face the No. 15 seed Georgia Bulldogs Thursday in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Division I softball championship.

"We had the opportunity to play Georgia last year, and did very well, despite not getting a win," said CU head coach Drew Peterson. "We're also looking forward to the possibility of playing North Carolina again, a match up from earlier this season. I have tremendous respect for all three programs in out bracket, and I think we have a great shot at doing well. It was a great draw for us."

The Camels, at 41-23 on the year, won its first A-Sun title since 1995 last weekend in DeLand, Fla., clinching the program's second ever NCAA berth. The Bulldogs, meanwhile, coming in at 43-22 overall, were most recently knocked out of the Southeastern Conference Championships by Tennessee, another one of the eight institutions representing the SEC in this year's tourney.

Georgia, making its seventh-straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, will be led by All-SEC First Team honoree Megan Wiggins, hitting .340 on the year with 47 RBI, 37 runs scored, 14 doubles, five home runs and five triples, who also claimed a spot on the league's all-freshman squad.

Along side Wiggins will be senior Sojourner Moody, hitting .308 with 38 runs scored and 20 stolen bases as an All-SEC Second Team member, with conference all-freshman Taylor Schlopy rounding out the trio. Schlopy will bring a .322 average at the dish, including 39 runs scored, 29 RBI, 21 stolen bases and 12 doubles.

The Fighting Camels became the lowest-seeded (fifth) team to win the A-Sun Championship tournament in history. The pre-season eighth pick in the A-Sun, Campbell won four games in three days to earn the title.

Campbell defeated second-seeded Stetson, 3-2, last Thursday, then knock fourth-ranked East Tennessee State out with two straight wins, 6-3 and 5-2. CU then claimed the league title and advanced to the NCAA's by winning a 10-inning thriller on Saturday over the Hatters, 6-3.

The Camels stand 17-5 in tournament play this year, including 4-0 mark last weekend in DeLand, and since April 8, CU hold a 13-5 overall record, with a 5-1 tally in the month of May.

Five Camels were named to the A-Sun All-Conference Teams for 2008, with senior outfielder Courtney Quinn grabbing first-team recognition after powering a school record 20 homers. Sophomore catcher Amanda Littlejohn and freshman outfielder Katie Hinton added second-team honors, posting averages of .377 and .374, respectively. Littlejohn also broke the CU single season RBI mark with her 69 runs batted in, while Hinton, a College Station, Texas native, 53 times this season. Hinton also grabbed A-Sun All-Freshman Team accolades, and was joined by second baseman Keeli Michael and shortstop Amanda Miller.

Campbell placed three players on the A-Sun All-Tournament team, including Littlejohn, Quinn and sophomore hurler Brittany Stanley, who took home tournament MVP. Littlejohn ended the tournament with a .471 average, two homers, five RBI, one double, one triple and three runs scored. Quinn hit .313 in the four games, knocking one home run with five RBI, three doubles and three runs scored. Stanley, meanwhile, pitched 31.0 innings over the last three days, going 4-0 with a 2.03 ERA and 23 strikeouts.

All-time, the Camels hold a 2-3 NCAA Tournament record, gaining their only experience in 1995. Campbell hosted UNC Greensboro in the 1995 best-of-three play-in series in Buies Creek, taking a split on day one before collecting a win in the rubber match. From there the Camels took on UCLA and South Carolina, dropping those contests 8-0 and 4-1 respectfully in the Columbia, S.C. Regional.

Also in the Chapel Hill bracket is North Carolina, a team the Camels have already faced this season, dropping both ends of a doubleheader at Williams Field on Feb. 20. The Tar Heels, at 50-10-1, will be hosting a NCAA Regional for the first time ever, will be making their sixth consecutive appearance in the brackets under Atlantic Coast Conference Coach of the Year Donna Papa.

The Heels will also have ACC Player of the Year Danielle Spaulding at their disposal, boasting a 16-2 record in the circle with a 0.86 ERA, 15 complete games and 194 strikeouts in 122.1 innings of work. The sophomore also registered a .325 average at the plate, knocking 10 homers with 36 RBI.

Spaulding was one of four Heels to be named All-ACC First Team, with Breanna Brown, Lisa Norris and Cassie Palmer also making an appearance. UNC placed two others on the league's second team, including Amber Johnson and Jennifer Jacobs. Brown, a junior outfielder, led the team with a .348 batting average, 69 hits and 15 stolen bases.

Drawing the first round match up with the Tar Heels is Brigham-Young University, coming in at 42-18 on the year. The Cougars are making their fourth straight tournament appearance while riding their fourth consecutive 40+ win season. Mountain West Coach of the Year Gordon Eakin brings senior Daniela Snow, batting .422 on the year with 78 hits, 20 doubles, 17 home runs, 65 RBI and a .805 slugging percentage. Another one of the eight Cougars batting over .300 is sophomore Angeline Quiocho, collecting a .385 average with 70 hits, 17 homers and 40 RBI.

In the circle, senior Christina Trice holds a 17-7 record with 12 complete games and 225 strikeouts in 165.0 innings pitched, while freshman Paige Affleck has tallied a 14-3 mark with a 1.40 ERA and 131 strikeouts.

The Division I championship provides for a field of 64 teams. The championship will be three weekends of competition. Four teams will participate at each of 16 regional sites in a double-elimination tournament. Sixteen teams were seeded and placed at one of the regional sites.

The regional winners will advance to super regional competition for a best-of-three series May 23-24 (Memorial Day Weekend) at eight campus sites.

The remaining eight teams will advance to the Women's College World Series, an eight-team, double-elimination tournament. The championship final will be a best-of-three-series. The WCWS will be conducted May 29 to June 4 at the ASA Hall of Fame Stadium in Oklahoma City.

The NCAA Division I Softball Committee selected teams from the following eight regions to participate in the championship: Central, East, Northeast, South, Mideast, Midwest, West and Pacific. Thirty conferences have been granted automatic qualification for the 2008 championship.