STATESBORO - Georgia Southern women's tennis will be facing No. 12-ranked Georgia Tech in the first round of the 2021 NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championships, announced on Monday evening with the NCAA.com live selection show. It is the Eagles' first NCAA Championships berth.

The fourth-seeded Eagles (19-8) will travel to take on the top-seeded Yellow Jackets (18-10) in the Atlanta regional on Friday, May 7, at 2 p.m. The other two teams participating in Athens are second-seeded Ole Miss (11-9) and third-seeded North Florida (17-7), who will play at 11 a.m. The winners will then meet on Saturday, May 8, to earn a berth in the NCAA's Round of 16, which will take place on May 16-22 in Orlando, Fla.

Georgia Southern won its first Sun Belt Conference tournament title in Atlanta earlier this year, defeating South Alabama, 4-3, on April 18.

"Just having the opportunity to have Georgia Southern's name appear on the tournament board is exciting in itself," Georgia Southern Head Women's Tennis Coach Sean McCaffrey said. "The added excitement of now knowing that we're going to play in Atlanta and play against Georgia Tech is really exciting. I know I'm fired up. After the Sun Belt Championship, we know we have a good amount of fans that can come out and support us. Elizabeth [Goines] is from Atlanta, so having her get the opportunity to play in her home town in the NCAA Championships is one of what could be a lot of amazing storylines for the regional. This is a great step for the program."

The first-round matchup will be the first meeting between the two teams since February 18, 2017, a 7-0 win by Georgia Tech. Prior to that, the last meeting was in 2000. Georgia Tech leads the overall series between the two teams, 9-2. Georgia Southern won back-to-back 5-2 wins over the Yellow Jackets in 1995 and 1996 in Atlanta. 

Georgia Southern is making its first NCAA Championships berth, but it is not the first national tournament experience for the Eagles. Prior to the NCAA sponsoring a championship for women's tennis, the Eagles participated in the AIAW Division II National Championships in four straight seasons, from 1980-83. Georgia Southern finished fourth nationally in both 1982 and 1983.

Click here to view the complete 2021 NCAA Division I Women's Tennis Championships bracket.