COLUMBUS, Ga.-The Belhaven baseball team will kick off the 2012 Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament on Thursday at 12:00 PM against Faulkner University at Golden Park in Columbus, Ga. The Blazers are the defending SSAC Champions having won the conference tournament in 2011. Belhaven (32-22, 14-16 SSAC) is the number eight seed in the tournament field and will face the top seeded Eagles who won the regular season title. An automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship Opening Round is on the line for the Blazers.

Belhaven is led by outfielder Anthony Doss who owns a team best .400 batting average with eight home runs and 49 runs batted in. Doss, a senior from Brandon, MS, is third in the NAIA in total doubles (21) and is 13th in total hits (74). Third baseman Bud Britt is second on the team in hits with 55 and has 35 RBI's. Infielder Jamie Bruno has collected 19 doubles to go along with seven home runs and 45 runs batted in. As a team, Belhaven is 17th in the nation with 104 doubles and is hitting at a collective clip of .279.

Senior Jon Patino leads the Blazer pitching staff with a 7-1 record and ERA of 0.89. Patino also has a save and 22 strikeouts in 30 innings of work. Closer Josh Clarke has recorded 10 saves and is eighth in the nation in the save department this season. Clark has 19 strikeouts in 19.1 innings and is holding opposing hitters to a .208 batting average. As a team, Belhaven's ERA stands at 3.64.

Faulkner (44-9, 27-3 SSAC) has had an outstanding season and enters the tournament on a 20 game winning streak. The Eagles overtook Lee for the regular season championship by sweeping Shorter in the final weekend of the season. The Blazers were the last team to beat the Eagles, taking a 5-2 decision on March 17th in Montgomery, AL Allen Johnson earned the win for Belhaven that day and Bruno drove in all five runs on a pair of home runs.

Faulkner leads the nation in stolen bases (163), is ninth in team ERA (2.96) and 10th in total runs scored (380). Pitcher Corey Black leads the nation in wins (10) and earned run average at .970. Craig Massey is Faulkner's leading run producer having sent in 49 runs on the season. Massey has seven home runs and 62 total hits while boasting a .405 batting average. Daniel Cayton leads the Eagles in home runs with 11 and has a .315 batting average. The Eagles take a team batting average of .326 coming into the tournament.

All the action of Belhaven's 2012 SSAC Tournament run can be heard through the athletics website courtesy of Stretch Internet and through live stats by clicking here. The complete SSAC tournament bracket and information on this year's event can also be accessed by clicking here.