DePauw (21-7), winners of the North Coast Athletic Conference Tournament with Saturday's 56-53 win over Ohio Wesleyan, makes its 23rd NCAA Division III postseason appearance on Friday, March 1, when it faces Berea (24-3) in an opening round game at 8:30 p.m. EST in Neal Fieldhouse. 
The evening's other first-round contest features Hope (24-3) against Ripon (19-8) at 6 p.m. Tickets are available for purchase at depauwtigers.com/ncaatickets and cash purchases will be accepted at the gate which opens at 5 p.m. on Friday. Friday's winners square off on Saturday, March 2, in an 8 p.m. second-round contest with the victor advancing to the Division III Sectional (Round of 16).
Berea, recipient of a Pool B at-large bid, is making its third NCAA appearance after competing in the 2020 and 2023 Championships and dropping opening-round contests. The Mountaineers captured a second consecutive Collegiate Conference of the South Tournament championship after defeating Belhaven by an 80-60 score on Saturday. The Mountaineers have won 18 of their last 19 games and touted a 16-game win streak at one point in February. Trent Milby is in his 10th season as head coach with a 209-68 record including seven straight seasons of at least 21 wins.
Lynkaylah James leads Berea with 15.6 points, 11.1 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game, while Drea Satori follows with 11.1 points and Jayden Merriweather 10.8. Satori leads the squad with 4.5 assists and Merriweather has hit a team-best 73 3-pointers. James shoots 55.7 percent from the floor.
DePauw, which made 18 consecutive trips to the NCAA postseason prior to last season, has posted a 34-20 postseason record including national titles in 2007 and 2013 and a third-place showing in 2002. This marks the 14th time the Tigers have hosted opening-round competition with the last coming in 2020. Head coach Kris Huffman is in her 31st season with the Tigers with a 720-147 record and reached the 700-win mark in the fourth-fewest games of any coach on any NCAA level after DePauw's 76-48 win over Calvin on Nov. 17.
Ava Hassel leads DePauw with 11.8 points, 2.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game and has hit a team-high 49 3-pointers. Riley Mont follows with 10.4 points per outing, while Diana Burgher hauls down 5.4 rebounds per contest. 
Hope earned a Pool C at-large bid and is appearing in its 24th Championship and 11th straight. The Flying Dutch enter with all-time record of 48-19 including national championships in 1990, 2006 and 2022 and a runner-up finish in 2010. Hope fell to Trine, 63-59, in Saturday's Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament championship contest. Brian Morehouse is in his 28th season at his alma mater with a 709-97 career record. With a 79-77 double overtime win over Alma on Jan. 13, he reached the 700-win plateau in the fewest number of games of any coach on any NCAA level.
Sydney Vis leads the Flying Dutch with 12.1 points and 1.8 steals per contest, while Olivia Bellows follows with 10.2 points. Courtney Lee hauls down 6.0 rebounds each outing and Raven Jemison averages 1.3 blocks. Karsen Karlblom leads the way with 51 3-pointers with Jada Garner dishing out 2.3 assists and ranking 15th in Division III with a 2.65:1 assist/turnover ratio.
Ripon earned automatic qualification into the Championship after winning the Midwest Conference Tournament on Saturday with an 84-70 victory over Knox. The Red Hawks are making their seventh overall postseason appearance with an all-time record of 2-6. Lauren Busalacchi is in her 11th season with the Red Hawks with a 159-100 record.
Ella Ten Pas leads the squad with 13.8 points and 9.3 rebounds per game and is shooting 55.1 percent from the floor. Bonnie Jensen follows with 11.9 points and 54.5 percent field goal shooting with Laney Havlovitz handing out 2.8 assists. Natalie Rauwolf has knocked down a team-high 36 3-pointers.