Vancouver, BC - For the second straight season, the UBC Thunderbirds softball team will compete at the Association of Independent Institutions Championship tournament. The double elimination tournament begins this Thursday May 1 and runs through Saturday May 3 in Lawrenceville, Georgia home of the host Georgia Gwinnett College.
The highly-competitive six-team field consists of two of the nation's top five teams and four top-35 squads. Two automatic berths to the NAIA national tournament are on the line.
Action begins with the opening round Thursday, May 1, at 8:00 am PST in Lawrenceville. For the complete bracket schedule click here.
The Thunderbirds, who finished the regular season 14-13, are the sixth seed and will face the third seed from the University of Houston-Victoria (28-11) in the opening round. Game time is 8:00 am PST Thursday May 1st. It is a rematch of last year's opening game of the tournament that saw the Jaguars defeat the Thunderbirds 7-2. Houston-Victoria is ranked No.19 in the NAIA Coaches Poll.
The tournament's top seed goes to NAIA No. 3 Louisiana State University at Alexandria (28-3), while NAIA No. 5 California State University San Marcos (33-5-1) has claimed the number two seed. The host Georgia Gwinnett Grizzlies (34-8-1) have earned the fourth seed for the double-elimination A.I.I. tournament, while Lindenwood University-Belleville (Ill.) (22-17-1) is the fifth seed.
All games will be video streamed live online on the Grizzly Digital Network. Games involving GGC will be free of charge while all non-GGC contests are available for $7.95 through Stretch Internet, LLC. Live stats also will be available for each contest.
The winner and runner-up of the tournament will each earn automatic berths to the NAIA Opening Round, May 12-14, at national sites announced Wednesday. The NAIA National Championships will be held May 23-29 at the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga.
