2011 MEAC Baseball Bracket  l  Live Statistics  l  Twitter Updates

NORFOLK, Va. – The Norfolk State baseball team (21-27, 9-9 MEAC) has earned the fourth seed in the six-team, double-elimination MEAC Baseball Tournament. The Spartans open play in the tourney against No. 3 seed North Carolina A&T on Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. All tournament games will be played at Jackie Robinson Ballpark in Daytona Beach, Fla.

The Spartans are still seeking their first-ever MEAC baseball championship. NSU has made four appearances in the MEAC Tournament championship round (1998, 2001, 2005, 2008), including twice under head coach Claudell Clark. The Spartans fell one game short of the title round last season, dropping an 8-7 decision to N.C. A&T in the losers' bracket final.

NSU has an extensive history with the Aggies in MEAC Tournament play. The Spartans are 6-11 all-time against the Aggies in conference tournament action, including a pair of losses in last year's tourney. The teams have met at least once in 12 of the 13 previous MEAC Tournaments in which the Spartans have participated. N.C. A&T has eliminated NSU from the MEAC Tournament eight times, including last year, while the Spartans did likewise in 2008 en route to their most recent championship round berth.

This season, the Aggies (20-32, 10-8) won two of three from NSU during conference play. That included a 6-2 victory in a May 11 makeup game that gave A&T the third seed over NSU and assured the Aggies of serving as the home team in Wednesday night's game.

The Spartans enter the tournament ranked second among MEAC teams in overall batting average (.297) and earned run average (5.11). The Spartans have three players ranked among the MEAC's top 10 in batting, led by first baseman Brandon Hairston (fourth, .375), outfielder John Rasberry (ninth, .358) and third baseman Ryan Montgomery (10th, .356). All three were named to the 2011 All-MEAC baseball team on Tuesday along with pitcher Ryan VanAssche and designated hitter James Taylor.

On the mound, NSU has three pitchers ranked in the MEAC top eight in ERA: VanAssche (third, 3.23), Ryan Shook (fourth, 4.06) and Jordan Egan (eighth, 4.77). Egan (71) and Shook (69) rank second and third, respectively, in strikeouts.

The Aggies counter with junior outfielder Xavier Macklin, who leads the MEAC with 22 home runs, 66 RBI, 55 runs score, an .814 slugging percentage and 140 total bases. He was named to the All-MEAC first team along with freshman shortstop Luke Tendler (.385, second in the MEAC). On the mound, the Aggies are led by left hander Esterlin Paulino (MEAC-leading 96 innings pitched and 89 strikeouts) and right hander Nick Oelker, who has six wins.

The NSU-N.C. A&T winner advances to a 2 p.m. game Thursday against the winner of Wednesday's 10 a.m. first-round game between No. 2 Delaware State and No. 5 Maryland Eastern Shore. The NSU-N.C. A&T loser plays at 6 p.m. Wednesday against the winner of a 10 a.m. losers' bracket game. Wednesday's other first-round game features five-time defending MEAC champion and top seed Bethune-Cookman against No. 6 Florida A&M at 2 p.m.

Live statistics for all NSU games in the tournament can be found here. The link can also be accessed by clicking the Live Statistics icon under the Fan Zone heading at www.nsuspartans.com, or by clicking Live Statistics from the right-side navigation on the NSU baseball home page at nsuspartans.com.

Admission for the tournament is $5 for children (13 and under) and students and $10 for adults.  Discounted ticket packages are available for all three days at a cost of $10 for children and students and $20 for adults. Tickets can be purchased at the Jackie Robinson Ballpark, 105 E. Orange Ave., Daytona Beach, Fla., beginning on Wednesday. For more information, visit www.meacsports.com.