From staff reports

Taylor TankersleyTaylor Tankersley has been sent down.

The former Warren Central and University of Alabama star was sent Tuesday night to Triple-A Albuquerque of the Pacific Coast League. He spent most of last season and all of this season with the Florida Marlins.

He pitched 1/3 of an inning in the Marlins’ 5-4 loss to Atlanta on Tuesday night with a walk and a strikeout. He has appeared in 23 games this season, and he is 0-1 with a 7.16 ERA in 16 1/3 innings.

A year ago, when Tankersley was struggling in the first half, he went to Albuquerque, refined his mechanics and came back strong.

“We need Tank to pitch on a regular basis,” Florida coach Freddy Gonzalez said in a press release. “We’re sending him down to get him some work. We need Tank. Right now we’re not using him enough.” The Marlins bullpen now has one left-handed choice in Renyel Pinto.

Tankersley starred at Warren Central for four years, leading the team to the Class 5A state championship in 2001 and a 36-3 record. He played three seasons at Alabama before being chosen as the Marlins’ first-round pick in the 2004 draft.Southern Miss to host C-USA baseball tourney in 2009Southern Miss will host the 2009 Conference USA baseball championship next spring.

The school was awarded the conference tournament during the league’s annual board of directors meeting that ended Tuesday in Orlando, Fla.

The tournament will be played May 20-24 at recently renovated Pete Taylor Park in Hattiesburg.

Southern Miss also was chosen to host the 2010 women’s golf championship.

The conference also announced that Tulane will host the 2009 women’s basketball championship.Big Three chosen for early television gamesMississippi’s Big Three football programs will have national exposure at the start of the season.

Mississippi State’s season-opener on Aug. 30 at Louisiana Tech is scheduled for ESPN2 at 5:45 p.m. The Bulldogs’ Sept. 13 game against Auburn will be broadcast by Raycom (locally WJTV) at 11:30 a.m., the Southeastern Conference said Tuesday.

Southern Miss’ Sept. 6 game at Auburn is slated for Raycom at 11:30 a.m., and Ole Miss will play Wake Forest on the same day at 2:30 p.m. on ABC.

In addition, the Egg Bowl between Ole Miss and Mississippi State is scheduled for Nov. 28 at 11:30 a.m. on Raycom.