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[May 12, 2008] May 12, 2008 MAGNOLIA, Ark. – Ninth-ranked Southern Arkansas begins play in the NCAA Division II South Central Region baseball tournament on the campus of Delta State at Dave “Boo” Ferriss Field in Cleveland, Miss., Thursday, facing No. 26 Ouachita Baptist at 3 p.m. in the second game of the tourney. The Muleriders (44-10) are the second seed, while the Tigers (43-14) are seeded fifth. For the second year in a row, four teams from the Gulf South Conference were selected to participate in the regional, which is scheduled for May 15-18. Following a double-elimination format, the regional will feature three games each day Thursday through Saturday, and potentially two on Sunday. Delta State (45-9) hosts the regional for the 11th time in school history and is the number one seed in the tourney. The Statesmen collected their 11th GSC baseball championship last week and are currently tied with Mount Olive (N.C.) as the No. 1 team in the nation in this week’s Collegiate Baseball poll. Delta State will play sixth-seeded and unranked Texas A&M-Kingsville (31-29) at 7 p.m. in Thursday’s final game, while third-seeded No. 16 West Alabama (45-11) will face fourth-seeded No. 6 Abilene Christian (43-15) at 11 a.m. in the tournament’s opening game. Delta State, and Texas A&M-Kingsville out of the Lone Star Conference, each received an automatic bid to the regional for having won their respective league tournaments. Abilene Christian was defeated by A&M-Kingsville in their conference tournament final. Thursday’s game will be the fifth meeting of the season between SAU and OBU with Southern Arkansas holding a 3-1 edge in their four games thus far. They took two of three games in the teams’ regular season series and then eliminated Ouachita Baptist from the GSC tournament last Monday with a 12-6 win. The Muleriders are winless in three games against Delta State this year, split two games with West Alabama and swept three games at Abilene Christian in February, and have not faced Texas A&M-Kingsville this season. There are eight NCAA regional tournaments across the nation with the winner of each advancing to the NCAA Division II College World Series May 24-31 at GCS Park in Sauget, Ill. GCS Park is home to the Gateway Grizzlies, a minor league team in the Frontier League. The park is located just outside the St. Louis, Mo., metropolitan area. Tickets for the South Central Region tournament are now on sale through the Delta State Athletics box office. Only all-tournament passes will be pre-sold. The all-tournament package is $25 for adults and $20 for senior citizens and students. Single session tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for senior citizens and students. Championship game tickets on Sunday are $10 and $8, respectively. For ticket information, contact the Delta State Athletic Department at 662-846-4300. |
