SAC BASEBALL TOURNAMENT RETURNS TO SMOKIES STADIUM

SEVIERVILLE - The Tennessee Smokies will host the 2018 Pilot/Flying J South Atlantic Conference Baseball Championship at Smokies Stadium starting on Thursday, April 26 at Smokies Stadium. 
The Catawba Indians captured their sixth-straight South Atlantic Conference Regular Season Championship with a 2-1 series win over Wingate on Saturday (April 21) evening.  With the crown, Catawba has earned the No. 1 seed in next week's Pilot/Flying J South Atlantic Conference Baseball Championship.  Catawba finished the season with a 19-8 League record.
Wingate earned the No. 2 seed with a 17-10 record in SAC play.  Carson-Newman received the No. 3 seed with a 16-11 record in conference, and Lincoln Memorial picked up the No. 4 seed with a SAC record of 15-12.   Lenoir-Rhyne, Newberry and Tusculum each finished conference play with records of 13-14. Each team was had a record of 3-3 versus the other two, so the tiebreaker used to determine seeding was each team's record versus top-seeded Catawba. With a record of 2-1 against the Catawba Indians, Lenoir-Rhyne earned the No. 5 seed, while Newberry took the No. 6 seed and Tusculum earned the No. 7 seed by virtue of the Wolves 2-1 record versus Pioneers. Rounding out the field of eight is Anderson at the No. 8 seed with a SAC record of 12-15.
The 2018 South Atlantic Conference Baseball Championship will be played at Smokies Stadium in Kodak, Tenn. and will get underway on Thursday, April 26.  Thursday's games will be single elimination, while the double-elimination portion of the Championship will be played Friday, April 27-Monday, April 30.  Below is the Championship schedule.
Thursday, April 26 (at Kodak, Tenn.)
#5 Lenoir-Rhyne vs. #8 Anderson, 4:30pm 
#6 Newberry vs. #7 Tusculum, 7:30pm 
Friday, April 27 (at Kodak, Tenn.)
#1 Catawba  vs. lowest seed from GM 1 & 2, Noon
#2 Wingate vs. highest seed from GM 1 & 2, 3:45pm
#3 Carson-Newman vs. #4 Lincoln Memorial, 7:30pm
Saturday, April 28 (at Kodak, Tenn.)
GM 3 loser vs. GM 4 loser, Noon
GM 3 winner vs. GM 5 loser, 3:45pm
GM 4 winner vs. GM 5 winner,7:30pm
Sunday, April 29 (at Kodak, Tenn.)
GM 7 winner vs. GM 8 winner, Noon
GM 6 winner vs. GM 8 loser, 3:45pm
GM 10 winner vs. GM 9 loser, 7:30pm
Monday, April 30 (at Kodak, Tenn.)
GM 9 winner vs. GM 11 winner, 1:00pm  
if necessary, 4:00pm 
The Smokies continue their 2018 season at Smokies Stadium on Wednesday, April 25, 2018 against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. The full schedule for this season and information regarding single-game tickets, season tickets, and mini plans can be found online at smokiesbaseball.com, or by calling the Smokies Ticket Office at 865-286-2300.
ABOUT THE TENNESSEE SMOKIES
The Tennessee Smokies are the Double-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. Members of the ten-team Southern League, Smokies baseball has been entertaining families and fans of America's national pastime in the East Tennessee region for over 100 years. To learn more about the Tennessee Smokies, visit www.smokiesbaseball.com