Pairings, Game Times Set for 2007 U.S. Army Horizon League Baseball Championship

May 21, 2007

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INDIANAPOLIS -- Regular-season titlist University of Illinois at Chicago holds the top seed for the 2007 U.S. Army Horizon League Baseball Championship, which begins Wednesday (May 23). Six teams converge upon Chicago for the opportunity to represent the League in the NCAA Championship.

UIC serves as the tournament host for the fourth time as Les Miller Field provides the backdrop for this year's League summit, although the Flames have never won the title on their home field. Butler University captured the League crown in Chicago in both 1998 and 1999, while the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee won the 2001 League Championship.

This year's event starts Wednesday morning as fourth-seeded Cleveland State University (13-42 overall, 10-17 in the League) battles fifth seed Butler (22-31, 10-20) at 11 a.m. (local time / noon Eastern time), followed by the 3 p.m. (CT) matchup between No. 3 seed UW-Milwaukee (23-30, 16-14) and sixth-seeded Youngstown State University (17-35, 9-21).

Thursday's (May 25) schedule begins with an 11 a.m. (CT) elimination contest between the losers of Wednesday's games before defending champion and this year's second seed Wright State University (34-20, 21-9) meets the higher-seeded of the previous day's winners at 3 p.m. Top seed UIC makes its 2007 tournament debut at 7 p.m. as the Flames (31-19, 21-6) take on the other winner from Wednesday's action.

A pair of survival games open the day on Friday (May 25), while the nightcap sees one team earn entry into the championship game. That team would have two chances to earn the League's automatic berth in the NCAA Championship. The other side of that bracket would be decided in Saturday's (May 26) opener, with the victor of that 11 a.m. match-up moving on to the 3 p.m. title showdown. A second championship game, if necessary, would take place at 11 a.m. on Sunday (May 27).

The Flames won their sixth consecutive regular-season League title behind a starting rotation featuring senior Zach Peterson (6-0 in League play) and freshman Steve Crnkovich (a loop-best 2.44 ERA this spring), while senior outfielder Larry Gempp Jr. (.375 batting average with 48 RBI) leads the UIC offense.

Wright State boasts four of the League's top seven hitters, including senior infielder Ross Oeder (.410 with a League-leading eight home runs) and sophomore first baseman Jeremy Hamilton (a .373 average featuring 34 extra-base hits). Wright State won two of three games from UIC in Dayton last weekend to close the regular season.

Cleveland State won three of four games versus YSU last weekend to escape the loop cellar and claim the fourth seed. Butler and UW-Milwaukee closed the season by splitting a four-game series in Indianapolis.

Wright State represented the Horizon League in the 2006 national summit after sweeping through the field on its home turf at last spring's loop summit. The Raiders outscored their opponents 52-5 in four games, defeating Butler in the championship game to move on to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1994.

To follow all the action of this year's League Championship, log on to www.horizonleague.org and click on the Baseball Championship icon. Also, free live video webcasts of all games will be shown on the Horizon League Network. The championship page includes links to CSTV's Gametracker for games in progress, along with complete summaries and box scores as contests are completed.

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2007 U.S. Army Horizon League Baseball Championship:
at Chicago, Illinois / Les Miller Field
(University of Illinois at Chicago, host)

Wednesday, May 23
Gm. 1 -- (#4) Cleveland State vs. (#5) Butler 12 p.m. Eastern time, 11 a.m. Central time
Gm. 2 -- (#3) UW-Milwaukee vs. (#6) Youngstown State 4 p.m Eastern time, 3 p.m. Central time

Thursday, May 24
Gm. 3 -- Losers of Wednesday's games 12 p.m. Eastern time, 11 a.m. Central time
Gm. 4 -- (#2) Wright State vs. higher-seeded team between Wednesday winners 4 p.m. Eastern time, 3 p.m. Central time
Gm. 5 -- (#1) UIC vs. lower-seeded team between Wednesday winners 8 p.m. Eastern time, 7 p.m. Central time

Friday, May 25
Gm. 6 -- Game 3 winner vs. lower-seeded team between Games 4 & 5 losers 12 p.m. Eastern time, 11 a.m. Central time
Gm. 7 -- Game 6 winner vs. higher-seeded team between Games 4 & 5 losers 4 p.m. Eastern time, 3 p.m. Central time
Gm. 8 -- Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner 8 p.m. Eastern time, 7 p.m. Central time

Saturday, May 26
Gm. 9 -- Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 loser 12 p.m. Eastern time, 11 a.m. Central time
Gm. 10 -- Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner 4 p.m. Eastern time, 3 p.m. Central time

Sunday, May 27 (if necessary)
Gm. 11 -- Game 10 winner vs. Game 10 loser 12 p.m. Eastern time, 11 a.m. Central time