NCAA Baseball Tournament: New restart time announced for first game of Tuscaloosa Regional
As Boston College took on Troy to start the Tuscaloosa Regional of the NCAA Baseball Tournament, rain forced a delay. The initial re-start time was announced as 5:05 p.m. ET, but it has since been pushed back — meaning Alabama vs. Nicholls State might be pushed back even further.
The NCAA announced a new re-start time of 6:05 p.m. ET due to lightning in the area. Per NCAA rules, each strike of lightning means teams will have to wait at least 30 minutes before they can get back on the field to resume play.
At the time of the delay, Boston College and Troy were tied at 3-3 in the bottom of the second inning.
The NCAA initially announced the re-start time as 5:25 p.m. ET, but edited the tweet and said it’d be 6:05 p.m. ET. Troy Baseball’s Twitter saw an opportunity to troll in the process.
“So remember that last just kidding, we were just kidding again,” the tweet read. “5:05 p.m. [central time] unofficial restart is what we’re hearing.”
Ultimately, though, 6:05 p.m. ET proved to be the official re-start time as things got back rolling in Tuscaloosa. The rain delay was officially two hours and 16 minutes long.
How the weather delay will impact Alabama vs. Nicholls State in the Tuscaloosa Regional
Alabama and Nicholls were supposed to start at 7 p.m. ET, but that start time will also be pushed back as a result of the weather delay in Game 1. The Crimson Tide announced how the rest of the day will proceed, including how much time will be between games. An official start time had not been announced as of publication.
“The restart time of game one in the Tuscaloosa Regional is set for 5:05 p.m. CT. Due to the delay, game two between the Crimson Tide and Nicholls will not start as scheduled,” the tweet read. “There will be a 55-minute warmup period between the games, at which time fans with tickets to game two will be allowed to enter Sewell-Thomas Stadium. A start time for game two is still to be determined.”
The regional round will feature a double-elimination format. The winners of Friday’s game will square off Saturday at 9 p.m. ET, while the losers will play an elimination game before that game with a 3 p.m. ET first pitch. Sunday will also feature two games, and an if-necessary game is set for Monday.