Blue Raiders Seeded Eighth in SBC Tourney

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee will face regular season Sun Belt Conference champion Louisiana-Monroe in the opening round of the 2008 Sun Belt Conference Championship hosted by Louisiana-Lafayette in Lafayette, La.

The Blue Raiders will face the Warhawks at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, May 21 in game four of the tournament.

The team hotel in Lafayette, La., is the Holiday Inn-Lafayette (Holidome) on NW Evangeline Thruway. Other hotels affiliated with the Sun Belt Baseball Championships are Hilton Lafayette on West Pinhook Road and Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites on Ambassador Caffery Parkway.

In lieu of a formal tournament banquet the host school, UL-Lafayette has opted for a Family Night. There will be a Media Home Run Derby followed by a Student-Athlete Home Run Derby with one representative from each of the eight schools competing in the tournament.

Freshman Bryce Brentz will represent the Blue Raiders as he leads the ball club in home runs with 18. His last home run was a grand slam against rival Western Kentucky which helped Middle Tennessee win and seal a spot in the 2008 Sun Belt Conference Championship.

Family Night is set to begin at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 20 at "Tigue" Moore Field with an awards ceremony at 7 p.m. before the Home Run Derby begins at 7:30 p.m. The night will conclude with a fireworks show at 8:30 p.m.

The tournament will begin on Wednesday, May 21 at 9 a.m. when Florida Atlantic faces Western Kentucky in the opening game. FAU and the Hilltoppers are on the same side of the double-elimination bracket as the Blue Raiders.

More information on the 2008 Sun Belt Conference tournament may be found at www.sunbeltsports.org.

Schedule of Events

Tuesday, May 20 - Sun Belt Family Night Schedule
6:00 - Autographs, Cajun Band
7:00 - National Anthem
7:05 - Academic & All-Conference Awards
7:35 - Media Home Run Derby
7:55 - Sun Belt Home Run Derby
8:30 - Fireworks Show

Wednesday, May 21
9 a.m. - Game 3 - No. 4 Florida Atlantic vs. No. 5 Western Kentucky University
12:30 p.m. - Game 2 - No. 2 New Orleans vs. No. 7 South Alabama
4 p.m. - Game 4 - No. 1 ULM vs. No. 8 Middle Tennessee
7:30 p.m. - Game 1 - No. 3 Troy vs. No. 6 Louisiana-Lafayette

Thursday, May 22
9 a.m. - Game 6 - G3 Loser vs. G4 Loser
12:30 p.m. - Game 5 - G1 Loser vs. G2 Loser
4 p.m. - Game 7 - G1 Winner vs. G2 Winner
7:30 p.m. - Game 8 - G3 Winner vs. G4 Winner

Friday, May 23
9 a.m. - Game 9 - G7 Loser vs. G5 Winner
12:30 p.m. - Game 10 - G8 Loser vs. G6 Winner
4 p.m. - Game 11 - G7 Winner vs. G9 Winner
7:30 p.m. - Game 12 - G8 Winner vs. G10 Winner

Saturday, May 24
* Game 13 will be necessary if the winner of Game 9 also wins Game 11.
* Game 14 will be necessary if the winner of Game 10 also wins Game 12.
2 p.m. - Championship Game

* If only one of the two early games is necessary on Saturday, the first game will be played at 10:00 a.m., and the Championship Game will start at 2 p.m. A thirty minute rest period will be given should the first game end after 1:30 p.m. If both "if necessary games" are played, the first game will begin at 9 a.m. and the second game will start 30 minutes after the completion of the first game. The championship game will then be played 30 minutes after the completion of the second game, but no earlier than 2 p.m.