INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Committee announced today the field of 64 teams for the 2004 NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship. Twenty one conferences have been awarded automatic qualification. The committee selected the remaining 43 teams at-large.

Eight regional tournaments, consisting of eight teams each, will be conducted at campus sites March 12, 13 and 15. The regional champions will advance to the Women's Elite Eight March 24, 25 and 27 at the St. Joseph Civic Arena in St. Joseph, Missouri. Missouri Western State College will host the Elite Eight.

Conferences that received automatic qualification, and the institutions representing them, are as follows:

California Collegiate Athletic Association Cal State Bakersfield Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference Anderson (South Carolina) Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association Shaw Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Lake Superior State Great Lakes Valley Conference Quincy Great Northwest Athletic Conference Seattle Pacific Gulf South Conference Henderson State Heartland Conference Drury Lone Star Conference Angelo State Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Northwest Missouri State New York Collegiate Athletic Conference Adelphi North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference North Dakota Northeast-10 Conference Merrimack Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Minnesota Duluth Peach Belt Conference GC&SU Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference California (Pennsylvania) Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Nebraska-Kearney South Atlantic Conference Catawba Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Benedict Sunshine State Conference Rollins West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference West Liberty State 

Those institutions receiving at-large berths are, in alphabetical order:

American International Armstrong Atlantic State Ashland Augusta State Barton Bellarmine Bentley Bryant UC San Diego Cal Poly Pomona Cal State Chico Central Arkansas Charleston (West Virginia) Christian Brothers Concordia-St. Paul Delta State Emporia State Ferris State Fort Lewis Fort Valley State Glenville State Grand Canyon Holy Family Indianapolis Lander Missouri Western State North Dakota State North Florida Northeastern State Northern Kentucky Philadelphia Sciences Pittsburgh-Johnstown Sonoma State South Dakota South Dakota State Southern Indiana Stonehill Virginia Union Washburn West Alabama West Texas A&M West Virginia State Western Washington 

Last year, South Dakota State relied on defensive intensity to win its first championship with a 65-50 win over Northern Kentucky.

For more information about the NCAA Division II Women's Basketball Championship, log on to www.ncaasports.com.