SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The Cal State San Marcos women's basketball team will open the NAIA Division I Women's Basketball National Championship against top-seeded Vanguard on Thursday evening.

The Schedule
NAIA First Round
Thursday, March 19, 2014 – 6:45 PM
Cal State San Marcos (15-17) vs. No. 1 Vanguard (26-1)
Frankfort, Ky. – Frankfort Convention Center
Watch Live
Live Stats

Watch Party
Join the CSUSM faithful in rooting on the Cougars at the official NAIA Tournament Watch Party on Thursday at 6:45 PM in The Clarke Room 110. Admission is free!

Tournament Coverage
NeuLion, the NAIA's official video-streaming company of 17 select NAIA national championship events, will be broadcasting the first 30 games of the Division I Men's Basketball National Championship. Don't miss the live video stream of all of the action from March 19-25. For more information and to pre-register, click here. A single-game pass is $9.95, or fans can purchase the entire Division I Men's Basketball Pass, which guarantees access to 30 of the 31 games at the tournament. The full tournament pass costs $24.95.

Tournament History
The NAIA National Championship is a 32-team, single elimination tournament. The First Round takes place with all 32 teams playing on either Wednesday or Thursday. The 16-team Second Round will take place Friday with the winners advancing to the tournament quarterfinals on Saturday. Sunday is a day off. The national semifinals are on Monday, with the national championship game taking place next Tuesday, March 25.

How'd We Get Here?
The Cougars were a pedestrian 9-16 overall on February 5, but have rallied to win six of their last seven games heading into the tournament. CSUSM, the No. 2 seed for the A.I.I. Tournament, upset top-seed Lindenwood-Belleville 82-68 in the championship game. Heather Thompson was named Tournament Most Outstanding Player and Sherika Miller was named to the All-Tournament Team.

The Lions
Vanguard (26-1) spent all 12 weeks of the season as the No. 1 team in NAIA Division I. The Lions topped the Cougars twice this season, 78-54 (Dec. 17, 2014) and 91-54 (Dec. 30, 2013). Vanguard and CSUSM are approximately 66.2 miles from each other, but the teams will travel over 2,000 miles to face each other on a neutral court.