BIRMINGHAM, Ala. | The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) announced the 2019 tournament field Saturday morning, with Alabama State serving as the host first the third consecutive year.

Alabama State, the second seed from the East Division, will open the tournament with Southern (third from the West) at 9 am in the tournament's first game.

Meanwhile, Texas Southern and Alabama A&M head into the tournament as the top seeds from the two divisions. Texas Southern (16-1 in conference play) clinched their seventh-straight Western Division championship earlier today after salvaging a double-header split with rival Prairie View A&M. The Lady Panthers, who enter the tournament as defending champions, earned the two-seed with a 15-3 record in conference play. Rounding out the field for the SWAC Western Division are Southern (6-11) and Arkansas-Pine Bluff (3-12).

In the East Division Alabama A&M comes in as the top seed after winning its second-straight Eastern Division championship with an 11-7 record in SWAC competition. Host Alabama State (10-7) earned the second seed and looks for its fifth-straight trip to the championship game, having finished as runner-up in three of the past four seasons.

Alcorn State (9-9), who shared the Eastern Division crown with Alabama A&M in 2018, is the third seed, and Jackson State (7-11) will make its first tournament appearance since 2015 as four-seed in his first year in the JSU dugout.

The 2019 SWAC Softball Tournament runs from May 8-11 at the Barbara Williams Softball Complex, with May 12 serving as an "if necessary" date to determine this year's champion. The opening-round matchups are as follows:

East #2 Alabama State vs. West #3 Southern, 9 a.m.
West #2 Prairie View A&M vs. East #3 Alcorn State, Noon
West #1 Texas Southern vs. East #4 Jackson State, 3 p.m.
East #1 Alabama A&M vs. West #4 Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 6 p.m.

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