SEC Tourney bracket set
FAYETTEVILLE — The Southeastern Conference announced its 2010 Softball Tournament field Sunday with the nationally third-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide claiming the No. 1 seed. The tournament will be hosted by the University of Arkansas at Bogle Park, Thursday through Saturday.
This will be the first appearance in the SEC Tournament for Arkansas (28-28, 10-18 SEC) under head coach Mike Larabee, and the program’s eighth trip to the league tournament. In seven previous appearances, the Razorbacks hold a 9-12 record in tournament play. Prior to the 2006 season, the SEC Tournament was double elimination.
The back-to-back appearances in the tournament for the Razorbacks are the first for the program since it qualified for the tournament in 2001 and 2002.
Arkansas will play the final game on Thursday’s opening day of the tournament. The Razorbacks will take on No. 1 seed Alabama in the nightcap at 6:30 p.m.
The same two teams faced off in the opening round of last season’s SEC Tournament. Alabama won the game 8-0. This is the fifth time the Crimson Tide and the Razorbacks will play in the conference tournament.
Other action on Thursday includes the No. 3 seed LSU Tigers opening up the tournament against No. 6 seed Kentucky at 11:00 a.m., followed by No. 2 seed Florida and No. 7 seed Auburn at 1:30 p.m. The evening session will feature No. 4 Georgia vs. No. 5 seed Tennessee at 4:00 p.m. followed by Arkansas-Alabama.
For the first time in SEC history, the entire tournament will be televised live on the ESPN family of networks. The quarterfinals and semifinals will air on ESPNU, while the championship game will air primetime on ESPN at 6:30 CT.
Covering the games will be ESPN’s softball crew of Beth Mowins, Michele Smith, Jessica Mendoza and Cara Capuano. SECSports.com will be live at the tournament as well, with exclusive online coverage behind the scenes.
The championship game can also be heard live on XM radio. The channel will be announced Monday. Tickets for the single-elimination tournament can be purchased through the Arkansas Athletic Ticket Office by calling 1-800-982-4647.
2010 Tournament BracketThursday, May 13Game 1: #3 LSU vs. #6 Kentucky (ESPNU) 11:00 a.m.Game 2: #2 Florida vs. #7 Auburn (ESPNU) 1:30 p.m.Game 3: #4 Georgia vs. #5 Tennessee (ESPNU) 4:00 p.m.Game 4: #1 Alabama vs. #8 Arkansas (ESPNU) 6:30 p.m. Friday, May 14 (Semifinals)Game 5: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner (ESPNU) 2:00 p.m.Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner (ESPNU) 4:30 p.m.Saturday, May 15Championship Game (ESPN) 6:30 p.m.All times are Central
Download: 2010 bracket.pdf
