Pairings Announced For 2010 Food Lion SAC Softball Tournament
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Lenoir-Rhyne University, which won its sixth regular-season conference softball title, will be the top seed for the 2010 Food Lion SAC Softball Tournament, which begins Thursday at Wingate University in Wingate, N.C.
The Bears (15-1 SAC, 44-6 overall) are ranked ninth nationally in the most recent National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division II poll. Lenoir-Rhyne has won four Food Lion SAC Tournament titles, with the most recent in 2007.
Lenoir-Rhyne will face eighth-seed Catawba College on Thursday at 4:30 p.m.
Catawba (5-11 SAC, 29-22 overall) finished in a four-way tie for sixth place in the conference standings, but earned the eighth seed in the tournament after conference officials broke the tie.
Carson-Newman College is the tournament's second seed. The Eagles (11-5 SAC, 33-8 overall) are the tournament's two-time defending champions and have won a league-best nine tournament titles.
Carson-Newman will face seventh-seed Lincoln Memorial University at 2 p.m. on Thursday. LMU is 5-11 in conference play and 27-19 overall.
Newberry College and Mars Hill College each went 9-7 in conference play to tie for third in the conference standings. Mars Hill and Newberry split their regular-season meeting. Newberry earned the third seed by virtue of its split against top-seed Lenoir-Rhyne, while Mars Hill lost both meetings against the Bears.
Newberry (9-7 SAC 29-11 overall), will face sixth-seed Tusculum College (5-11, 14-24 overall) at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday.
Tusculum, Lincoln Memorial, Catawba and Brevard College tied for sixth place in the final conference standings. In the four-way tie, Tusculum went 4-2 against LMU, Catawba and Brevard; LMU went 4-2 against Tusculum, Catawba and Brevard; Brevard went 3-3 against Tusculum, LMU and Catawba; Catawba went 1-5 against Tusculum, LMU and Brevard.
LMU and Tusculum, with 4-2 records against all tied teams and 1-1 against each other, were broken out and that tie was broken by going head-to-head against the top seed and working down. Both teams were 0-2 against top-seed Lenoir-Rhyne. Tusculum split with second-seed Carson-Newman, while LMU was 0-2, giving the Pioneers the sixth seed.
LMU, Catawba and Brevard remained in a three-way tie. LMU earned the seventh seed by going 3-1 against Catawba and Brevard.
Catawba and Brevard remained tied for the final tournament spot. They split with each other, were 0-2 against both Lenoir-Rhyne and Carson-Newman, and split with third-seed Newberry. Catawba went 1-1 against fourth-seed Mars Hill, while Brevard was 0-2 against Mars Hill, giving Catawba the eighth seed.
The tournament kicks off Thursday with fourth-seed Mars Hill (9-7 SAC, 26-13 overall) facing tournament host and fifth-seed Wingate University (8-8 SAC, 33-13 overall) on Thursday at 9 a.m.
Tournament play continues with six games on Friday. Two games on Friday will be played at Forest Hills High School.
Three more games are set for Saturday. The championship game will be played Sunday at Wingate at 1 p.m., with a second game, if necessary, to follow.
The tournament champion will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Division II Softball Championship.
All-Tournament tickets will be available at the gate for $15 for adults and $7 for students and children. Daily ticket prices are $6 for adults and $3 for students and children.
Wingate University will provide live stats and a live pay-per-view webcast for all games played at Wingate University.
Food Lion is the title sponsor for all South Atlantic Conference championships.
Thursday, April 22
Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Softball Tournament
At Wingate University, Wingate, NC
Game 1: No. 4 Mars Hill vs. No. 5 Wingate, 9 am
Game 2: No. 3 Newberry vs. No. 6 Tusculum, 11:30 am
Game 3: No. 2 Carson-Newman vs. No. 7 Lincoln Memorial, 2 pm
Game 4: No. 1 Lenoir-Rhyne vs. No. 8 Catawba, 4:30 pm
Friday, April 23
Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Softball Tournament
At Forest Hills High School, Marshville, NC
Game 5: Newberry/Tusclum loser vs. Carson-Newman/Lincoln Memorial
loser, 9 am
Game 6: Mars Hill/Wingate loser vs. Catawba/Lenoir-Rhyne loser,
11:30 am
At Wingate University, Wingate, NC
Game 7: Newberry/Tusculum winner vs. Carson-Newman/Lincoln
Memorial winner, 9 am
Game 8: Mars Hill/Wingate winner vs. Catawba/Lenoir-Rhyne winner,
11:30 am
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. Game 8 loser, 2 pm
Game 10: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 loser, 4:30 pm
Saturday, April 24
Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Softball Tournament
At Wingate University, Wingate, NC
Game 11: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 11 am
Game 12: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 1:30 pm
Game 13: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 loser, 4 pm
Sunday, April 25
Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Softball Tournament
At Wingate University, Wingate, NC
Championship Game 14: Game 12 winner vs. Game 13 winner, 1 pm
Game 15 (if necessary), Game 14 winner vs. Game 14 loser, 3:30
pm