Talladega, AL. - The Men's and Women's Basketball teams travel to Pittsburgh after qualifying for the national tournament.

"I am not only excited but proud to be able to announce to the College, the community, and our alumni that Talladega College will be represented by both the Men and Women," Dr. Hawkins said. "We've always known that our players are winners, now the entire country is about to see that first hand."

The two first year Men's and Women's Basketball programs have received bids to the 2009 USCAA National Tournament, Thunder on the Three Rivers. The National Tournament is set to take place March 3-7 in Uniontown, Pennsylvania on the campus of Penn State Fayette.

The Tornadoes received the top seed in the Division I Bracket upon the completion of a record breaking regular season. The Tornadoes finished the regular season ranked # 1 in the USCAA Coaches Poll. The Tornadoes won over 20 regular season games while upsetting five NCAA Division I teams along the way.

The #1 seed Tornadoes will match up with the #8 seed Marygrove College out of Detroit, Michigan in the Opening Round. The game is scheduled for March 4th at 3:00 P.M. ET.

Athletic Director and Men's Head Basketball Coach Matt Cross says the team has worked hard.

"Teams can only win a National Championship in the postseason, so we are focusing all our attention now to the postseason, "Cross said. "We are peaking at the right time as evident of our eight game winning streak and now is the time to take our high level of play to an even higher level."

The Lady Tornadoes received the #9 seed in the Women's Division after finishing up the regular season with a winning season. The Lady Tornadoes have established a nice five game winning streak of their own heading into postseason play.

The #9 seed Lady Tornadoes will match up with #8 seed University of Cincinnati Claremont out of Cincinnati, Ohio in the Opening Round. The game is scheduled on March 4th at 11:00 A.M. ET.

Head Women's Basketball Coach Romeo Lagmay says its talent that's taking the team to the top.

"Our team was raw, yet talented and although this is a new team, we were able to gel and mold the new recruits so that they understood that they could compete with anyone, "Lagmay said. "It will be a challenge, but I am proud of my players and confident that the Lady Tornadoes will give their best and win a National Championship."

For more information and to view tournament brackets please visit www.theuscaa.com or www.uscaahoops.com. Please utilize these websites to follow your Tornadoes and Lady Tornadoes throughout the tournament.