May 23, 2004

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The sixth-seeded Memphis Tigers have drawn the 2004 Conference USA Tournament opener on Wednesday, May 26. Memphis will face No. 3 Southern Miss in its first post-season appearance since the 2001 season. Game time is set for a 9 a.m. start at Houston's Cougar Field.

Memphis enters the Tournament as winners of six of their last seven, while Southern Miss dropped a C-USA series to No. 4 ECU over the weekend, but has won seven of its last 10.

East Carolina will be the No. 1 seed after running away with the regular season title by four games. The fourth-ranked Pirates (47-9) sport the best record in Division I and set the C-USA record for league wins with 25, against just five losses. They will face No. 8 Louisville on Wednesday at 3:00 p.m. Louisville earned the final spot in the tournament after sweeping USF over the weekend.

Tulane, winner of the second-seed by way of tiebreak over Southern Miss, will take on seventh-seeded UAB at 12:30 Wednesday afternoon. Tulane has won four of the leagu's first eight tournament championships.

The four and five seeds, Houston and TCU will play the late game on Wednesday as first pitch is slated for 7:30 p.m.

The 2004 Conference USA Tournament Schedule is as follows:

Wednesday, May 26
Game One - 9 a.m. - (6) Memphis vs. (3) Southern Miss
Game Two - 12:30 p.m. - (7) UAB vs. (2) Tulane
Game Three - 4 p.m. - (8) Louisville vs. (1) East Carolina
Game Four - 7:30 p.m. - (4/5) TCU vs. (4/5) Houston

Thursday May 27
Game Five - 9 a.m. - Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
Game Six - 12:30 p.m. - Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4
Game Seven - 4 p.m. - Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2
Game Eight - 7:30 p.m. - Winner Game 3 vs. Winner 4

Friday May 28
Game Nine - 3 p.m.
Game 10 - 6:30 p.m.

Saturday May 29
Game 11 - 9 a.m
Game 12 - 12:30 p.m.
Game 13 (if necessary) - 4 p.m.
Game 14 (if necessary) - 7:30 p.m.

Sunday May 30
Championship Game - 1 p.m.