Eat Carolina’s baseball team will look to start the AAC Tournament off on the right foot with a game against No. 3 seed South Florida on Tuesday.
The Pirates, the No. 6 seed, will face the Bulls in the last game of the day on Tuesday. More information on the game can be found below from ECU Sports Information.
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Photo credit: ECU Sports Information photo
CLEARWATER, Fla. – No. 6 seed East Carolina kicks off play at the 2025 American Athletic Conference Baseball Championship Tuesday night with a first-round contest versus No. 3 seed South Florida at BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, Fla.
The Pirates (29-25, 13-14 AAC) seek their first AAC Tournament title since 2022 when they swept through the field and earned a Top 8 national seed for the NCAA Tournament. ECU has captured three conference tournament championships since joining the American (2015, 2018 and 2022). The Pirates advanced to the semifinal round in 2024 after reaching the title contest in 2023.
Stream: ESPN+ (Ryan Urquhart, Patrick Murray and Jeff Brightwell)
East Carolina went toe to toe with the Bulls just a few days ago, dropping two of three to the hosts in the final AAC regular season series of the year at the USF Baseball Stadium. The Pirates won the opener 5-1 but fell in the last two games of the weekend.
Entering the conference tournament, ECU ranks fourth in the league in earned run average (5.08) as the pitching staff has struck out 489 batters against 149 walks in 464.0 innings of work. The Pirates are hitting a collective .274 with 77 doubles, four triples, 62 home runs, 228 walks drawn and 60 stolen bases. Braden Burress, who was tabbed to the All-AAC Second Team and All-Freshman Team earlier Monday, leads the conference in batting average (.385) and is second in on base percentage (.491) as well as fifth in hits (67) and tied for sixth in runs scored (47).
Projected Pitching Matchup
LHP Ethan Norby (6-5, 3.65 ERA, 74.0 IP) vs. LHP Corey Braun (8-2, 3.11 ERA, 89.2 IP)
About South Florida
After missing out on the conference tournament a season ago, the Bulls (29-23, 16-11 AAC) rebounded nicely with a top-three finish under first-year head coach Mitch Hannahs. South Florida checks in at fifth among league teams in batting average (.275) and sixth in ERA (5.30) with Marcus Brodil pacing the lineup with a .337 batting average. The Bulls’ pitching staff has struck out a conference-low 373 batters but have walked just 109 in 450.1 innings.
The South Florida Series
East Carolina leads the all-time series with South Florida by a 33-19 margin and has won 12 of the last 16 meetings dating back to the start of the 2022 campaign. The Pirates won two of three matchups the last time the teams played in conference tournament action as ECU dropped its opener to the Bulls in the first game of the 2023 event before winning twice in the semifinal round to eliminate South Florida and play in the title contest.
2025 American Baseball Championship presented by Regions
BayCare Ballpark | Clearwater, Fla.
Tuesday, May 20
Game 1: No. 5 Tulane vs. No. 4 Florida Atlantic | 9 a.m. | ESPN+
Game 2: No. 8 Rice vs. No. 1 UTSA | 47 minutes after Game 1 | ESPN+
Game 3: No. 7 Wichita State vs. No. 2 Charlotte | 4 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 4: No. 6 East Carolina vs. No. 3 South Florida | 47 minutes after Game 3 | ESPN+
Wednesday, May 21
Game 5: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2 | 1 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 6: Loser of Game 3 vs. Loser of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 5 | ESPN+
Thursday, May 22
Game 7: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2 | 1 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 8: Winner of Game 3 vs. Winner of Game 4 | 47 minutes after Game 7 | ESPN+
Friday, May 23
Game 9: Loser of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 5 | 1 p.m. | ESPN+
Game 10: Loser of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 6 | 47 minutes after Game 9 | ESPN+
Saturday, May 24
Game 11: Winner of Game 7 vs. Winner of Game 9 | 9 a.m. | ESPN+
Game 12: Winner of Game 8 vs. Winner of Game 10 | 47 minutes after Game 11 | ESPN+
Game 13: Loser of Game 11 vs. Winner of Game 11 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+
Game 14: Loser of Game 12 vs. Winner of Game 12 | TBD (if necessary) | ESPN+
Sunday, May 25
Game 15: Semifinal Winners | Noon | ESPNEWS