CLEARWATER, Fla. | South Alabama will open the 2026 season this weekend with five games in three days at the 23rd Annual NFCA Leadoff Classic presented by MAXBP held at the Eddie C. Moore Complex.

South Alabama will open up tournament play with a pair of games on Friday, taking on Eastern Kentucky at 12 p.m. (CT) and Southeastern Louisiana at 3 p.m. (CT), both on Field 4. On Saturday, the Jags will face Rutgers at 11 a.m. (CT) contest on Field 2, and then close out the weekend with a pair of games on Sunday, taking on North Carolina Central at 9 a.m. (CT) on Field 9, and then Missouri at 12 p.m. (CT) on Field 8.

Tickets will be available via online purchase only, and can be purchased on the tournament central page.

Live stats and the streaming links for all of South Alabama's games can be accessed on the schedule page.

South Alabama's first four games of the tournament will be streamed by GameChanger, while its final game against Missouri will be aired on the MLB Network, the first-ever appearance by the program on the network.

To watch the contests on MLB Network, viewers can visit www.mlbnetwork.com for their local channel listings or to subscribe to one of its Direct-To-Consumer offerings. Viewers who are unable to access the broadcasts on MLB Network, can still watch the games on the GameChanger app for free. 

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Tournament: 23rd Annual NFCA Leadoff Classic presented by 
Site: Eddie C. Moore Complex (Clearwater, Fla.)

vs. Eastern Kentucky (Field 4)
Date: Friday, Feb. 6
Time: 12 pm (CT)

THE SERIES
All-time series: EKU leads 2-0
In Mobile: EKU leads 1-0
In Richmond: --
At Neutral Site: EKU leads 1-0
Current Streak: EKU 2

vs. Southeastern Louisiana (Field 4)
Date: Friday, Feb. 6
Time: 3 pm (CT)

THE SERIES
All-time series: South Alabama leads 13-3
In Mobile: South Alabama leads 6-1
In Hammond: South Alabama leads 6-2
At Neutral Site: South Alabama leads 1-0
Current Streak: SELA 1

vs. Rutgers (Field 2)
Date: Saturday, Feb. 7
Time: 11 am (CT)

THE SERIES
All-time series: South Alabama leads 2-0 
In Mobile: South Alabama leads 2-0
In Piscataway: --
At Neutral Site: --
Current Streak: South Alabama 2

vs. North Carolina Central (Field 9)
Date: Sunday, Feb. 8
Time: 9 am (CT)

THE SERIES
All-time series: South Alabama leads 1-0
In Mobile: --
In Cary: --
At Neutral Site: South Alabama leads 1-0
Current Streak: South Alabama 1

vs. Missouri (Field 8)
Date: Sunday, Feb. 8
Time: 12 pm (CT)

THE SERIES
All-time series: UM leads 4-0
In Mobile: UM leads 1-0
In Columbia: --
At Neutral Site: UM leads 3-0
Current Streak: UM 4

NOTES
•    South Alabama has competed three at the NFCA Leadoff Classic doing so at the 2024, 2023 and 2020 events
•    The Jaguars went 4-1 during the last time they competed at the tournament with their lone loss coming to Missouri, the eventual tournament champ
•    The meeting versus Eastern Kentucky marks the sixth time in the last seven seasons that the Jaguars have opened the season outside the state of Alabama
•    South Alabama enters the opening weekend of the 2026 campaign with a blend of talent - 14 returners and 11 newcomers
•    Entering the 2026 season, Olivia Branstetter has had a hit in 11 of her last 15, and reached base safely in 14-straight games
•    Branstetter - both a first-team (2025) and preseason (2026) all-SBC selection - ranked second on the club in batting average (.320), hits (40), doubles (7) and RBI (26)
•    Presley Lively, set freshman program records in triples (5), runs (48), walks (35) and on-base percentage (.422) during the 2025 campaign
•    The 35 walks by Lively were a new single-season best, and her 48 runs scored were the most by a Jag since the 2016 season when Emily Messer crossed the plate 48 times, which were tied for third-most in a season
•    RHP Ryley Harrison ranked in the Top 10 of the league in ERA (10th), strikeouts (eighth), strikeouts looking (30, seventh) and saves (t-fifth)
•    Fellow pitcher Caitlyn Heyl was a two-time First-Team NJCAA All-America selection at Northwest Florida State College, compiling a 72-4 record for the Raiders, while striking out 304 batters in 419.0 innings of work and a registering a 1.29 earned run average

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