VALDOSTA, Ga. – The No. 7-seed Valdosta State women's basketball team opens the NCAA South Regional Friday at 3:30 p.m. ET against No. 2-seed Tampa at Union University in Jackson, Tenn.
 
Fans can access links to live stats and audio/video streaming of the championship at vstateblazers.com on the women's basketball schedule page.  The game also will be broadcast on 92.1 WDDQ FM in Valdosta with Mike Chason having the call.  The video stream of the game will be free of charge.
 
VSU qualified for its 14^th trip to the NCAA postseason and the second-straight berth under third-year head coach Deandra Schirmer.  Last season, VSU defeated Lee and lost in heartbreaking fashion in the regional semifinal to eventual NCAA South Region champion Lander.  VSU is 14-13 all-time in the NCAA postseason with a third-place finish in 1984. 
 
The Lady Blazers have the most NCAA tournament victories of any team in the South Regional with 14.  Florida Southern is second with an 11-14 mark as it is making its 15^th appearance to lead the field.  Both Tampa and Union each have seven victories in the tournament.  Savannah State is making just its second appearance in program history and first since 1995.  Tampa is making its 13^th appearance for third-most behind FSC and VSU.  The Lady Blazers, Lee and Union are the only three teams to have qualified last season and this season among the regional field.
 
Schirmer is 59-20 at VSU and went 17-3 this season in the GSC.  The 17 league victories were the most all-time in program history for VSU as the team went 17-2 in Gulf South Conference play.  The Lady Blazers were picked third in the preseason coaches' poll and finished runner-up behind Union in the regular season.
 
VSU is coming off a disappointing 74-61 loss to Lee in the GSC Semifinal last Saturday in Birmingham, Ala.  The Lady Blazers never held the lead in the game and trailed by as many as 16 points in the game.  VSU fought valiantly on a number of occasions and cut the deficit back to one multiple times, but was unable to get over the hump to take the lead.  Graduate student Kwajelin Farrar scored a team-high 20 points leading three players in double figures, along with 15 points from graduate student Nicole Heyn and 13 points from sophomore Tamiya Francis.  VSU struggled offensively in the game and on the glass as it shot just 36.4 percent for the game and was outrebounded 37-22, including 26-11 on the defensive end. 
 
Farrar and Heyn earned GSC First Team All-League honors this season and Farrar was named to the GSC All-Tournament Team.  Farrar finished the GSC Tournament with 37 points, 15 of 27 from the field and 12 rebounds.  For the season, Farrar and Heyn have been the 1-2 punch offensively for the Lady Blazers.  Farrar has played in 28 games with 26 starts, leading the team in field goal percentage at a .567 clip on 178 of 314 and 14.7 points per game.  She has 54 made free throws, one 3-pointer and leads the team averaging 8.1 rebounds per game.  Farrar has 3 steals for second on the team, along with 19 blocks also for second on the squad.  She has scored in double figures 26 times and has eight double-doubles for the year. 
 
Heyn has played in 25 games with 24 starts and is 109 of 242 from the field for a .450 clip.  She is a team-best 52 of 120 from distance (.433) and is 71 of 93 from the line (.763) to lead the team.  Heyn is second on the team in rebounding at 7.6 per contest, while she has 53 assists with a team-high 54 steals and 20 blocks.  She has 18 games in double figures with six double-doubles. 
 
On Thursday, Farrar was named D2 Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) First Team All-South Region, joining Union's Jaelencia Williams, who was named South Region Player of the Year.  Joining Farrar and Williams on the first team were Eckerd's Maya Price, Tampa's LaShayla Wright-Ponder and Lee's Haley Schubert. The second team honorees were Jaclyn Jarnot of West Florida, Ashiala Jackson of Tuskegee, Julia Jenike and Whitney Jacob of Florida Southern and Emily Jones of Christian Brothers.  Farrar is the first Lady Blazer to earn D2CCA First Team All-Region honors since former Lady Blazer Madi Mitchell earned the award in both 2017 and 2018.
 
As a team, the Lady Blazers are shooting .438 from the field on 691 of 1577.  VSU is 204 of 595 from beyond the arc (.343) and 348 of 519 from the line (.671).  The Lady Blazers are averaging 38.6 rebounds per game and allowing 31.6 rebounds per contest.  VSU has 437 assists with 246 steals and 57 blocks for the season. 
 
Nationally speaking, VSU leads the GSC and is fifth nationally in scoring defense allowing 53.2 points per game and is 14^th nationally in scoring margin at 15.9 points per game also to lead the GSC.  VSU is 34^th nationally and tops in the league in assists per game at a 15.6 clip, while it is 24^th nationally in field goal percentage defense at a .356 clip for tops in the conference.  In addition, as one of the best teams defensively, the Lady Blazers are 20^th nationally in 3-point field goal percentage defense, holding teams to a .260 clip from deep. 
 
Individually, Farrar is 15^th nationally and third in the GSC in field goal percentage with her .567 clip, while she is second in the league and 34^th nationally in offensive rebounds per game at a 3.8 clip.  Farrar's 178 made field goals places her third in the league, while Heyn is third in the conference in steals with 54.  She has been deadly this season from beyond the arc for a .433 average for ninth nationally and second in the GSC. 
 
Tampa enters with a 29-5 record overall and went 17-3 in the Sunshine State conference.  The Spartans won the league regular season and tournament titles.  Tampa downed No. 2-seed Florida Southern in the SSC Championship game on Sunday, 74-67.  The Spartans are led this season by Allyah Abney who leads the team in soring at 13.9 points per game.  Wright-Ponder is second in scoring at 12.7 points per game and leads the team averaging 8.2 rebounds per contest.  Kayla Bonilla averages a team-high 3.3 assists per game.  Dori Nagy is third in scoring at 11.5 points per game as is Melijah Sullivan. 
 
As a team, the Spartans are eighth nationally in field goal percentage at a .464 clip, while they are ninth nationally in assists (508) for a 14.9 average and second in the Sunshine State Conference.  Tampa leads the SSC in rebounding margin at 6.6 for 34^th nationally, while it is 12^th nationally in total rebounds with 1,266 and third in the SSC in rebounding per game at a 37.2 clip.  The Spartans hold teams to just 56.6 points per game for 20^th nationally and second in the league.  Bonilla is second in the SSC in assists (111), while Mya Guisto is third with 108.  Abney is second in the league in field goal percentage at a .460 clip and leads the SSC in rebounds with 206.   
 
Tampa is under the direction of head coach Tom Jessee who has guided the team to a program-best 29 victories this season.  The Spartans currently are 18^th nationally.  A total of 12 of the Spartans' 14 tournament appearances have come under the guidance of Jessee. 
 
VSU and Tampa last met in Valdosta with a 62-57 VSU victory on Dec. 4, 2018.  VSU leads the all-time series 12-6 dating back to the 1985-86 season. The teams have gone 5-5 in the last ten meetings.  VSU won the last meeting in the NCAA Tournament, coming on an 83-73 victory on Mar. 14, 2008, as VSU, a No. 6-seed, downed No. 3 seed Tampa in Cleveland, Miss.  VSU reached the regional final that season, falling to top-seeded Delta State.  The Lady Blazers are 2-0 against Tampa in the NCAA postseason as VSU also won on Mar. 9, 2007, with a 64-57 victory in the first round in Fort Myers, Fla.
 
If VSU defeats Tampa, it would face the winner of No. 6-seed Benedict vs. No. 3-seed Lee on Saturday at 6 p.m. ET in the regional semifinal.  The regional final is set for Monday, Mar. 14 at 8 p.m. ET with the winner advancing to the Elite Eight.  The 2022 NCAA Division II Elite Eight is scheduled for Mar. 22-25 at the Birmingham Crossplex in Birmingham, Ala.
 
VSU went 1-2 against Lee this season as both teams won during the regular season on their home courts, including a dramatic 51-50 victory for VSU with 0.7 seconds remaining as Farrar forced a Lee miscue and passed to Francis, who scored a layup for the winner, while VSU and Benedict split two meetings this season, both also winning on their home courts.