Longwood University (LU) will host the 2017 Big South Softball Championship. The event, scheduled May 10-13, will be the first full postseason tournament the school has hosted since becoming a Big South member prior to the 2012-13 academic year.

“We’re really excited,” LU Director of Athletics Troy Austin said. “One of the benefits to being in (a) conference is moments like this where we can showcase our campus and the town, really. And of all of our programs, the softball program definitely has earned that right.”

The Longwood softball team has earned a high profile within the Big South Conference after winning the conference tourney in three out of its four seasons in the league. Claiming the 2013, 2015 and 2016 Big South titles, the Lancers have also been successful in the NCAA Tournament in the past two years, logging three victories and their first NCAA Regional Championship appearance.

“We are obviously excited that Longwood will be hosting the Big South Softball Tournament,” Farmville Mayor David Whitus said. “This is another opportunity for the spotlight to be focused on our area.”

Farmville Town Manager Gerry Spates expressed a similar sentiment and perspective.

“I know it’s going to fill up the hotels and help all of the businesses downtown,” he said. “Anything we can do to bring attention to Longwood and the community is a great thing for all of us.”

The location of the Big South Softball Championship rotates each year, and Austin said Longwood had known it was coming.

“But we also did some things to earn it, getting our facilities to where they are,” he said.

He said one of the requirements Longwood had to meet was having proper lighting. Additionally, it needed to be clear that the town and area, in general, could host the other nine teams in the conference.

Another contributing factor to Longwood’s being chosen to host the tournament was University President W. Taylor Reveley IV and the Board of Visitors’ decision a year and a half ago to adjust the university calendar.

“We were actually supposed to host last year, but the conference was concerned with the conflict of the weekend of the tournament and Longwood’s graduation,” Austin said. “So, knowing that President Reveley and the board were moving it to a different weekend, it worked better to host it this year. So, there was some movement behind the scenes to actually make sure we could host.”

Reveley is looking forward to the fruit of that behind-the-scenes work.

“Longwood will be thrilled to welcome to Farmville players, coaches and fans for the 2017 Big South Softball Tournament,” he said. “It will be wonderful for our program to play for its fourth Big South Championship on our home field, and to demonstrate again what came across to tens of millions of viewers during the Vice Presidential Debate — that Farmville is a great college town that knows how to welcome visitors for a big event.”