Colleges

Bulls seek Big East baseball tourney

By GREG AUMANN
Published December 9, 2005

USF will submit a bid to host the Big East tournament in May at the Phillies' spring training home in Clearwater.

The Bulls had sought to host the tournament at Legends Field in Tampa, but the dates (May 24-28) conflicted with the Tampa Yankees' minor-league schedule. Instead, the Bulls hope to bring the tournament to Bright House Networks Field, a 7,500-seat stadium that opened last year.

"We're exploring all possibilities for hosting the tournament in 2006 and 2007," said John Timberlake, the Phillies' director of Florida operations. "I think it'd be great for our area."

Timberlake said he has been in contact with Clearwater city officials and area visitors bureaus about additional support for hosting the event. USF is hosting Big East championships this spring in tennis (on campus) and golf (at Lake Jovita, near Dade City).

The Big East is expected to name a site for this year's tournament this month, with a separate announcement for the 2007 site early next year. Pinellas County hosted the ACC baseball tournament in St. Petersburg in 1997 and 2002, and Tampa is bidding to host that tournament in 2007 and 2008.

[Last modified December 9, 2005, 01:19:17]