This season's regional bid is in a familiar location for Auburn softball.
It's the same place the Tigers' season ended last year, where a pair of one-run losses eliminated them from the Clemson Regional. Auburn will have an opportunity for redemption this weekend in Clemson, following a 40-win regular season where the Tigers finished third in the SEC.
Let's take a look at the field for this season's Clemson Regional.
Cal State Fullerton (33-19)
We'll start with Auburn's first opponent of the weekend, Cal State Fullerton. The Titans are 33-19 this year, finishing second in The Big West conference and just a game behind Long Beach State.
Cal State Fullerton is led by senior pitcher Myka Sutherlin, who boasts a 1.30 ERA in 188.1 innings of work. Sutherlin's ERA is the 15th-lowest in the nation, with her hits allowed per seven innings also ranked top 20 in the country.
Auburn has faced Cal State Fullerton three times in program history. The Tigers are 1-2 against the Titans, with their last matchup occurring in 2015.
UNC Greensboro (37-20)
The Spartans earned their bid to the NCAA Tournament after winning the Southern Conference tournament. They'll face Clemson in their first game Friday, hoping to use their power to upset the host team.
As a team, UNC Greensboro hit 68 home runs this season, good for 16th in the nation. Two batters have double digit home runs, as sophomore Jessie Shipley and senior Maycin Brown both have 11 on the season.
If Auburn were to face UNC Greensboro at any point during the regional, it would mark the first ever meeting between the two schools.
Clemson (46-9)
Even though the program is less than five years old, Clemson has quickly burst onto the scene as one of the top softball programs in the country. It's now hosting a regional for the second consecutive season after going 46-9.
The Tigers began the season winning 37 of their first 38 games, led by two-way player Valerie Cagle. In the circle, Cagle's been Clemson's primary starter, pitching to a 1.20 ERA in 169 innings of work, while holding opposing hitters to a .177 average.
Meanwhile, Cagle is averaging .465 herself at the plate, leading the team in home runs with 18 and RBI with 53.
Auburn's lone matchup with Clemson was last season, as Cagle pitched a four-hit shutout and scored the game's only run in Clemson's 1-0 victory.
Game Times
Clemson and UNC Greensboro will face off first Friday at 2 p.m. CT with Auburn's game against Cal State Fullerton set for 4:30 p.m. CT. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
The winner of the Clemson Regional will matchup with the winner of the Norman Regional, where top-seeded Oklahoma is the favorite.
