HAMMOND - Making its final run before opening Southland Conference action next weekend, the Southeastern baseball team opens a four-game homestand beginning Tuesday when it plays host to regional power South Alabama in a 4 p.m. contest at Alumni Field.

The game, which will be pre-empted for the Southeastern-Texas State men's basketball game that is scheduled for 7 p.m., can be heard in the Hammond area on KSLU-FM (90.9) and on the internet at www.LionSports.net. Fans that show up with tickets to the basketball game will be admitted free to the baseball game. All Southeastern students are admitted free with a valid ID.

Coming off a four-game road trip that concluded with an 11-10 win over 2004 NCAA Regional participant Middle Tennessee on Sunday, Southeastern (6-8) opens a stretch where it will play five of the next six games at home prior to opening SLC play at Northwestern State March 18-20. The Lions will host Samford University for a three-game series beginning Friday before facing Southern (at Denham Springs' North Park) and Louisiana-Lafayette (at Alumni Field) in a pair of midweek games next Tuesday and Wednesday.

Five regulars in the lineup are hitting above .300 on the season for Southeastern, with true freshman Rob Territo (.391-1-10) leading the way. Territo went 4-for-5 and hit a critical two-run double in the ninth inning in Sunday's win at MT. Jason Waguespack (.368-2-7), Kyle Ginn (.339-0-7), Ryan Spencer (.313-1-6) and Randy Roth (.311-1-11) follow for the Lions, who enter the game hitting .283 as a team - third in the Southland Conference.

Slidell's Chris Province (0-0, 3.00 ERA) will make his first career start on the mound for Southeastern with South Alabama (7-6) countering with right-hander Joey Doan (1-0, 7.71 ERA).

The Jaguars, one of the top programs in the Gulf South, makes its first trip to Hammond since a 9-1 win in 1997. USA swept a doubleheader from the Lions last season in Mobile, 8-0 and 6-2, as the teams met for the first time since Southeastern claimed the 1998 Coca Cola Classic which included a win over then fifth-ranked Wichita State.

Leading USA at the plate is Ben Froemming (.333-0-6) with Joel Collins (.318-0-8), Tyler Jones (.309-1-5) and Aaron George (.308-1-4) following. The Jaguars enter the game with a .261 batting average as a team while posting a team ERA of 4.16.