BIG EAST Championship Central
 
MASON, Ohio  – The BIG EAST Baseball Championship Presented by Jeep continues Saturday with No. 2 Xavier taking on No. 3 St. John’s in the second elimination game of the tournament. Play starts at 1 p.m. on the BIG EAST Digital Network Presented by SoFi. John Fanta and Matt Schumacker have the call from the booth with Paul Fritschner and Mike Schmaltz in the dugouts.
 
The winner will move on to play top-seed Creighton in the championship game which was moved to Saturday night at 6 p.m. The winner will need to win three times in two days to take the title. Top-seed Creighton needs one win to take the title.
 
Both games on Saturday can be watched live on the BIG EAST’s main twitter handle  (@BIGEAST) or on the BIG EAST Digital Network on Caffeine.
 
This is the sixth time St. John’s and Xavier will play in the BIG EAST Tournament. Since 2014, St. John’s and Xavier, and St. John’s and Creighton have played the most games against each other with six. Xavier and Creighton have met five times prior.
 
Saturday’s #BIGEASTbase Coverage: 
Game 5 (Elimination Game)
No. 2 Xavier (26-30) vs. No. 3 St. John’s (31-22)
1 p.m. (First pitch at 1:03)
Watch on @BIGEASTDigital: Twitter Live | Caffeine
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/xavier/baseball/


BIG EAST Tournament Record: Xavier leads the series, 4-1
Last BIG EAST Tournament Meeting:  St. John’s won, 2-0 (Game 2, 2019)
Overall Series Record: St. John’s leads Xavier, 14-5
 
Why We’re Watching: 
The winner of the Saturday afternoon game advances to the evening championship. For either team to win the whole thing, they would need to win three straight games. St. John’s is the tournament’s defending champion, but Xavier was the tournament winner the year prior. St. John’s shutout victory over Xavier on Thursday was the first for the Red Storm over the Musketeers in the tournament. The Red Storm and Musketeers also met on the championship stage in Omaha in 2017. Xavier defeated St. John’s in game 1, 13-3; then 7-6 in the championship after rallying from a 3-0 deficit. Earlier this season in Queens, Xavier took two from St. John’s, winning 11-8 in the opener and 8-1 in the Sunday finale. St. John’s won the Saturday game 9-8 in an 14-inning affair. St. John’s is 53-40 (.570) in the league tournament  with nine titles and four runner-up finishes. Xavier is 9-1 (.900) with three titles. Since the league’s realignment in 2014, only St. John’s or Xavier has won the tournament title.
 
 
Game 6 – Tournament Championship
No. 1 Creighton (37-11) vs. Game 5 Winner – No. 2 Xavier/No. 3 St. John’s
6 p.m. ET (first pitch 6:03 p.m.)
Watch on @BIGEASTDigital: Twitter Live | Caffeine
Live Stats:  http://www.sidearmstats.com/xavier/baseball/
 
BIG EAST Tournament Record vs. Xavier: Xavier leads the series, 4-1.
Last BIG EAST Tournament Meeting: Xavier won 7-6 (Game 4, 2017).
Overall Series Record: Creighton leads the series, 12-11.
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BIG EAST Tournament Record vs. St. John’s: St. John’s leads the series, 3-2.
Last BIG EAST Tournament Meeting: Creighton won, 17-13 (2019, Game 4)
Overall Series Record: Creighton leads the series, 12-11.
 
Why We’re Watching: 
A win for Creighton would give the Bluejays their first BIG EAST Tournament win. Creighton has been the tournament runner-up three consecutive times: 2014-2016. St. John’s is chasing tournament title No. 10, Xavier No 4. The title winner receives the BIG EAST’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
2019 BIG EAST Baseball Championship Presented By Jeep 
Thursday, May 23 – First Round
Game 1: No. 1 Creighton 10, No. 4 Seton Hall 9
Game 2: No. 3 St. John’s 2, No. 2 Xavier 0
 
Friday, May 24 – Second Round
Game 3: No. 2 Xavier 2, No. 4 Seton Hall 1
Game 4: No. 1 Creighton 17, No. 3 St. John’s 13
 
Saturday, May 25 – Semifinal (BEDN)
Game 5: No. 2 Xavier vs. No. 3 St. John’s, 1 p.m.
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME 6: No. 1 Creighton vs. Game 5 winner at 6 p.m. ET
 
Sunday, May 26 – Championship (FS2) – if necessary **
Game 7: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner at 1 p.m. ET
**an If-necessary game will be played should the Game 4 winner lose in Game 6 **