C-USA Tournament: Saturday recap

The stage has been set for the championship game in the 2007 Conference USA Baseball Tournament and it’s just as expected – No. 1 vs. No. 2. It’s how they got there that was a surprise.

Rice, ranked No. 2 nationally, No. 1 in RPI and expected to get the top national seed when pairings are announced, saw its 20-game winning streak snapped in Saturday’s first game, falling to Memphis 2-1.

The Owls responded by scoring 20 runs on 20 hits in the nightcap, eliminating Memphis 20-9. The 29 combined runs tied a tournament record for most runs in a game.

The Tigers fell to 36-25 and await their postseason fate, which will be announced Monday.

The homestanding Pirates clinched their spot in between those two games, knocking off Tulane (34-26) behind the efforts of Harrison Eldridge and Stephen Batts, by a 9-4 score.

The two teams meet today for the championship at 1 p.m. EDT. The game will be replayed later in the day on CSTV.