BUTLER, Pa. – The Shippensburg University baseball team will compete in the 2012 PSAC Baseball Championships beginning Wednesday from Butler's Pullman Park. For the second straight year, the Raiders are the East's No. 2 seed and will open against West No. 3 seed California (Pa.).

Live statistics of the tournament will be provided by the PSAC sports information director and can be accessed through the link located above. The Shippensburg University sports information department will be providing live Twitter updates throughout the tournament; that information can also be accessed by clicking on the link located above.

Day passes are being sold for $7 and are only valid for the date on which they are purchased. PSAC passes and students of PSAC institutions with valid identification will be admitted for free. No complimentary tickets are available.

Consistent Improvement

Shippensburg (30-19, 15-9 PSAC East) has posted an eight-win overall improvement from last year's regular season — which itself was a nine-win improvement from the 2010 regular season.

Included in this year's victories was No. 300 in the career of current head coach Matt Jones — who spent seven years at Elizabethtown before his arrival in Shippensburg.

The Raiders have qualified for the PSAC tournament five times in six seasons under Jones. SU last won the conference title in 2007 — Jones' inaugural season.

History With California

This is the third straight PSAC Tournament appearance in which Shippensburg will open against California. Last season, Cal earned a 13-6 victory in the opening game of the tournament. In 2009, Cal recorded a 6-2 win — again in the opener — from rainy Lancaster.

The two teams have split the last six meetings between one another in the conference tournament.

When Shippensburg won the 2007 PSAC Championship, it defeated California 18-6 to win the title from Slippery Rock's Jack Critchfield Park. Shippensburg defeated the Vulcans during the 2003 and 2006 PSAC tournaments but the Vulcans won in 2004.