The highlight of this weekend's action is the beginning of conference play in the SEC -- and it begins with a bang! The league's two premier programs, national No. 2 Alabama and No. 4 Tennessee, will be meeting in Tuscaloosa. So eagerly anticipated is the three-game series (a doubleheader Saturday, plus a single game Sunday) that 'Bama is selling special hillside general-admission seats to accommodate the excess crowd. There's no question that the Vols suffered greater senior losses from last year's team (including pitching ace Monica Abbott) than did the Tide, but Tennessee seems to be hanging in there.

Also within the SEC, Florida (24-1 and No. 5 in both polls with a few first-place votes in each) hosts Mississippi.

Speaking of Florida, the only team to defeat the Gators this season, Long Beach State, hosts a tournament this weekend that also includes UCLA and Northwestern (Long Beach tournament site).