The NCAA Division III Softball Committee has announced seven of eight first-round sites for the 2009 Division III Softball Championship.

Seven teams will compete at five first-round sites and eight teams will compete at three first-round sites. All first-round sites will use a double-elimination format.

The seven predetermined first-round hosts and sites for games beginning May 7 are:

* DePauw University, Greencastle, Indiana

* Endicott College, Beverly, Massachusetts

* Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, Illinois

* Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York

* Ramapo College, Mahwah, New Jersey

* Salisbury University, Salisbury, Maryland

* Simpson College, Indianola, Iowa

The committee will determine the eighth first-round site as teams are selected for the championship and assigned to sites May 3, in order to minimize the number of flights required for West region teams to travel to a first-round site. The deadline for institutions in the West region to submit a bid to host is April 29.

The seven-team first rounds will be held May 7-10, and the eight-team first rounds will be held May 7-11. The eight-team finals, hosted by Montclair State University, will be held May 15-19 at the Montclair State softball stadium in Montclair, New Jersey.

For more information about the Division III Softball Championship, log on to www.ncaa.com.