2011 Sun Conference Baseball Tournament Field Announced
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Sun Conference office has announced the seeding and pairings for the 2011 Sun Conference Baseball Tournament. The tournament will feature six of the 10 league teams and will run from Tuesday, May 3 – Friday, May 6, 2011 at City of Palms Park in Ft. Myers, Fla.
Embry-Riddle, SCAD Savannah, Southeastern, St. Thomas, South Carolina-Beaufort and Webber International are the six teams that will be making the trek to the Boston Red Sox spring training facility for The Sun Conference Tournament.
Embry-Riddle will be the number one seed for the third straight season after posting an impressive 24-3 conference mark in 2011. The Eagles won every one of their nine conference series, and posted sweeps in six of the nine sets. ERAU posted the best conference record since 2004, dropping just three of 27 conference contests. The Blue and Gold are ranked No. 2 in the NAIA and have an overall record of 43-8.
The St. Thomas Bobcats will enter the conference tournament as the number two seed after a 15-12 conference record. The Bobcats lost just three Sun Conference series, and were swept just once (ERAU). STU was the 2010 Sun Conference Tournament runner-up after ending the season as the fifth-best team in conference play. STU will look to capture their first conference tournament title.
The only newcomer to this seasons’ six-team event is three-seed Southeastern. The Fire will be making their first ever trip to the conference tournament after joining the league in 2010. Southeastern finished 2011 with a 15-12 TSC record, taking five of their nine conference series. Coach Jason Beck will lead his 21st-ranked squad into the tournament with an overall record of 38-17.
SCAD Savannah will be the fourth-seed in Ft. Myers. The Bees posted a 15-12 record in conference play and a 27-27 record overall. SCAD grabbed series’ wins in six conference series, being swept just one time (ERAU). The Bees finished third at the 2010 conference tournament as the No. 4 seed.
Webber International returns to the conference tournament after a year hiatus. The Warriors were 13-14 in Sun Conference play during the season and 29-24 overall. Coach Brad Niethammer brings WIU into the tournament with three conference series wins.
The final team to qualify for the 2011 edition of The Sun Conference Tournament is South Carolina-Beaufort. The Sand Sharks were the two-seed in last year’s event, but failed to get a win and were eliminated after just two games. USCB will look to improve their performance from a year ago after they ended the year 13-14 in TSC play and 27-18 overall.
The tournament will kick off on Monday, May 2 with The Sun Conference Baseball Tournament banquet where the 2011 All-Conference teams will be announced, along with the winners of Player of the Year, Pitcher of the Year, Coach of the Year and the Champion of Character award winner.
On Tuesday, May 3 No. 1 seed Embry-Riddle will open up the event against No. 6 USCB at 11 a.m. Game two will feature No. 2 St. Thomas and No. 5 Webber International at 3 p.m., before the nightcap between No. 3 Southeastern and No. 4 SCAD Savannah at 7 p.m.
All tournament information can be found here at The Sun Conference Baseball Tournament home page.