BIRMINGHAM – The stage is set for the 2010 Southwestern Athletic Conference Softball Championship as the tournament is scheduled to get underway this week, Thursday, April 29 through Sunday, May 2. The top four teams from the Eastern and Western Divisions will be heading to the Shea Brothers Softball Complex in Irondale, AL to vie for the 2010 title.
In the East, Mississippi Valley State posted a 13-3 SWAC record to clinch its seventh straight Eastern Division title and #1 tourney seed. The Devilettes are the six-time defending champions and will look to make it seven in a row this weekend.
With a 12-5 conference record, Alcorn State will enter the tournament as the East’s #2 seed. The Lady Braves last claimed a share of conference championship in 1997 (co-champions with Grambling State). Rounding out the Eastern bracket are Alabama State and Jackson State with the #3 and #4 seeds, respectively. The Lady Hornets finished the season with an 11-6 slate, while the Lady Tigers registered a 6-11 mark in conference play to punch the last tourney ticket in the East.
Texas Southern claimed the #1 seed in the West with a 13-4 record and will seek its first SWAC title since 2000. Southern University, the 2009 Western Division champion, captured the West’s #2 seed and will be in search of its third SWAC championship and first since 2003.
Grambling State and Arkansas–Pine Bluff both finished with identical 6-11 records in the West. However, the Lady Tigers swept the Lady Lions in a three-game series earlier in the season to claim the tie-breaker advantage and the #3 seed while UAPB enters the tourney in the #4 slot. Grambling State last won the conference title in 2001.
First round action of the tournament will begin at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday. Friday and Saturday’s games are scheduled to start at 1 p.m. Sunday’s Championship game is set for 1 p.m. (CT) and will air live on ESPNU.
