VALDOSTA, Ga - The Valdosta State baseball team begins postseason play as it heads to Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Ala. for a Gulf South Conference Championship Tournament matchup against No. 5-seed Delta State. First pitch is set for Friday, May 7, at 2:30 p.m. ET.
 
The Blazers (24-14, 22-13 GSC) earned the No. 4-seed and will face the No. 5-seed Delta State (24-15, 21-14 GSC). The winner of VSU versus DSU will face the winner of No. 1-seed Lee versus No. 8-seed Auburn Montgomery the following day, Saturday, May 8, at 11 a.m. ET. The format for the tournament is double elimination as the teams that dropped its first game will play each other for a chance to stay in the tournament on May 8 at 2:30 p.m. ET.
 
The GSC Baseball Championship will be streamed live through FloSports.  Fans can purchase a monthly or yearly membership to FloSports by clicking on the link to the right and following the instructions on the How to Sign Up for FloSports page.  Fans can purchase a month-to-month plan for $19.99 or a discounted annual subscription rate of $150 ($12.50/month).  FloSports partnered with the GSC as the official streaming partner for GSC Football and conference championships.  Also click on the links to the right for the GSC Baseball Championship Central Page and the Choccolocco Park website.
 
The games will be broadcast on WJEM 94.3 FM with Kit Strief having the call of the games and online at foxsportsvaldosta.com. Click on the links for audio of the game at vstateblazers.com on the baseball page.
 
Lee is the No. 1-seed in the tournament with a 32-7 record and a 26-6 mark in conference play. West Florida grabbed the two spot after finishing the regular season 29-8 overall and 28-8 in the GSC. Shorter rounds out the top three with a 26-13 record for 23-13 in the league, followed by UAH at six, West Georgia at seven, and AUM to finish out the eight qualifiers.
 
The Blazers are looking for its fifth GSC championship tournament title with its last coming during the 2012-13 season. Delta State leads the GSC with 15 tournament titles as it looks to defend it, having won the conference in 2018-19.
 
VSU closed out its regular season against Alabama Huntsville which included a thrilling 7-3 extra innings win. The Blazers and the Chargers both were able to get 24 runs across the board despite VSU only coming away with one win. During its sole win, Chase Coker got the Blazers on the board with a deep shot passed the left field fence to put the Blazers ahead. The Chargers were able to tie things up in the eighth as well as in extras after the Blazers went ahead by one in the 10th. VSU exploded with four runs in the 11^th, highlighted by a Jakob Sessa double and a Jordan Holt single.
 
On Wednesday, the league office announced the 2021 All-Gulf South Conference Teams. Three Blazers were named to the teams with senior Nick Lewis earning first team honors at the shortstop position, along with senior David Maberry in the designated hitter role and senior starting pitcher Tristan Cone on the second team. Lewis finished the season with the team lead in hits (57), batting average (.407), and doubles (16). Maberry leads the team with his 37 RBI where Cone leads the Blazers pitching core with his six wins.
 
Also on Wednesday, the NCAA announced teams that were 'Under Consideration' in each region. The teams 'Under Consideration' included eight teams compiled of six GSC teams, one of which was Valdosta State, and two Sunshine State schools. UAH, Delta State, Lee, Shorter, and West Florida were the GSC schools which were 'Under Consideration', with Florida Southern and Tampa named under the Sunshine State.
 
VSU is 12-23 against Delta State during its last 35 appearances and are looking to break an 11-game losing streak. The Blazers haven't won against the Statesmen since Apr. 24, 2017, having been outscored 105-75 during the streak. The Blazers faced off against the Statesmen this season which all came down to the wire. A late comeback for the Blazers in game one of the series fell short, followed by a walk-off for DSU in game two and an extra inning thriller which the Statesmen were able to take away in the closeout game. In total, VSU knocked down 35 hits for 20 runs where DSU totaled 34 hits for a run total of 24 runs.