LEWISTON, Idaho - Faulkner and IU Southeast square off in an elimination game Tuesday set for 5 p.m. central in the Avista NAIA World Series. The two teams were not originally scheduled to meet Tuesday, but because the Eagles had already played Lewis-Clark State, the tournament committee swapped Faulkner and Southeastern. 

THE STAKES
The elimination game stakes need no explanation, but what is awaiting on the winning side is a little more complex. When just four teams remain, the tournament committee reseeds to prevent matchups. Based on 3 a.m. scratch work, it appears that the winner of this game will face Georgia Gwinnett and the winner of Southeastern vs. Lewis Clark State will face Central Methodist as it is the only way to prevent rematches. 

THE HISTORY
This will mark just the second time these two schools have met on the baseball field. The Eagles won an 8-1 decision in Kingsport, Tenn. May 12, 2011 in the Opening Round. Faulkner would advance to the World Series for the first time after defeating Union (Ky.) 4-2. Since then, the Eagles have appeared in nine of the last 10 and eight straight World Series while IU Southeast is on the biggest stage in NAIA baseball for the first time ever.

THE PATHS
Faulkner's path has been brutal to this point. IU Southeast, the 15th-ranked team in the country, will be the lowest ranked opponent the Eagles have encountered since the SSAC championship game against William Carey. Tuesday's game will mark the 12th time in the last 15 outings that the Eagles have played someone in the top 15 and enter with a 7-4 record in such contests. 

Grit is the word to describe the Grenadiers. The Grenadiers swept the River States Conference regular season and tournament titles. IU Southeast swept the Kingsport Bracket, upsetting the No. 1 team in the country Tennessee Wesleyan twice on the very field where they met Faulkner 10 years ago to reach the World Series without RSC Player of the Year Matt Monahan. This team started 5-10 in February, but has been a remarkable 45-5 since then, picking up win No. 50 Monday against Keiser. They defeated Concordia (Neb.) Friday and dropped Saturday's game to Central Methodist. 

PROBABLE STARTERS
For Faulkner, either J.C. Toro or Tyberius Correa will take the hill. Toro has been the third weekend starter throughout the season, but Correa pitched the third game of both the SSAC Tournament and the Montgomery Bracket. 

For IU Southeast, it's likely a Johnny Wholestaff approach. Cade Reynolds threw just 2.1 innings against Concordia in an opener role Friday that saw four different pitchers combine to allow just two runs to knock off the Bulldogs so he could possibly get the start Tuesday as well. 

COVERAGE
The games will be broadcast on the NAIA Network in a pay-per-view format -- $14.95 for a day pass and $34.95 for the tournament pass.
Live stats will be available on Dakstats.