DELAND, Fla. (May 7, 2008) - After an 11-day hiatus, the ETSU softball team finally returns back to the diamond when they open the 2008 Atlantic Sun Tournament hosted Holiday Inn against Mercer at 9 a.m. from Patricia Wilson Field.  

ETSU, who have not played since splitting with Kennesaw State back on April 26, is in search of its first-ever conference title this weekend and hopes to set two school records as well.

The Lady Bucs secured the No. 4 seed after going 28-31, 10-12 in conference action. ETSU is two victories shy of setting the all-time single-season wins mark and three stolen bases away of eclipsing the 93 thefts in 2005.   

ETSU and Mercer squared off almost two weeks in Macon with the Lady Bucs taking game one, 5-4, before falling in game two, 5-3. Marissa Hardy (Rocklin, Calif.) earned the win in the circle for the Softball Bucs - tossing a complete-game - and allowing four runs on four hits. Sophomore catcher Trisha Massenzo (Russellville, Tenn.) and junior outfielder Vicki McCoy (Ringgold, Ga.) attacked the Bears' pitching as the duo combined to hit 7-for-13 (.538) in the series. Massenzo went 3-for-6 with a home run and three RBI, while McCoy was 4-for-7 with four stolen bases, two runs scored, and one RBI.

Mercer leads the all-time series 4-2, but both teams have split the last two doubleheaders.

Below is a breakdown of the tournament match-ups:

#3 Mercer vs. # 4 ETSU, 9 a.m.

#1 Lipscomb vs. # 6 Gardner-Webb, 11 p.m.

#2 Stetson vs. #5 Campbell, 1 p.m.

The winner of ETSU/Mercer will face the winner of Stetson/Campbell on Thursday; while the loser between ETSU/Mercer gets the winner Lipscomb/Gardner-Webb - which will also be played Thursday.

Fans unable to make the trip to DeLand, can view all the action by visiting, http://asun.playonsports.tv/ or click the link above.

Stay tuned to www.ETSUBucs.com for more information regarding the conference tournament and all other Buccaneer athletic news.