Houston Regional Preview

The Field

(1) Rice [#2] (49-12)

The Owls were the preseason #1, but didn't live up to those expectations early on. But Wayne Graham's club has won 30 of their last 32, including a recent 20-game win streak. They�ve hit their stride at just the right time, and that means trouble. Rice is known for their pitching, but the bats that have made headlines lately. The Owls scored 60 runs in winning the Conference USA tournament, including 36 in the last two games against Memphis and East Carolina.

(2) TCU (46-12)

The Horned Frogs swept both Mountain West titles for the second year in a row, going 20-3 in league play, then sweeping through the MWC tournament in Las Vegas. TCU is solid at the plate (.316), in their rotation (top three starters are 27-6), and in the bullpen (starter-turned-closer Sam Demel has 13 saves).

(3) Baylor (34-25)

The Bears made a late-season move to get into the regionals, sweeping their last conference series vs. Kansas State, then knocking off Oklahoma State, Missouri, and Oklahoma in the Big 12 tourney before falling to Texas A&M in the final. This is the second straight year Steve Smith�s team will be at Rice.

(4) Prairie View (34-23)

The Panthers, like Baylor, return to Rice for the second straight year. They won the SWAC West Division title, and swept through the SWAC tournament, defeating Southern 8-7 for the title. The 2004 season is no doubt still fresh in many minds, when Texas Southern upset defending champ Rice in their opening game. And last year, the Panthers held a 5-3 lead going into the 8th inning, but the Owls came back to win 6-5.

Southerncollegesports.com

Regional Preview- College Station

COLLEGE STATION REGIONAL
vs Houston Regional

The Field

(1) Texas A&M (44-16)

The Aggies were probably the nation�s best turnaround story this season. In Rob Childress� first season last year, A&M went 25-30-1. This season, they had 25 wins on April 1st. They were in the running for a national seed for most of the season, but a .500 finish in conference hurt. But the Aggies rebounded from a season-ending sweep vs. Texas by winning the Big 12 tourney, including knocking off the 'Horns in pool play, and a 14-6 win over Baylor in the title game. They�re hosting for the first time since 2003.

(2) Louisiana-Lafayette (43-15)

The Ragin� Cajuns were in the running for a #1 seed until the end, but the Sun Belt�s regular-season champions fell short in the tournament title game, and that may have cost them their shot at a #1 and a regional at home. If there�s any consolation, they�re the highest #2 seed in the field.

(3) Ohio State (37-22)

The Buckeyes were SCS.com�s preseason pick to win the Big Ten title. Turns out they did end up doing it, but not in the fashion they were expected to. They finished .500 in the Big Ten, and got into the conference tournament on the final day, but ended up sweeping through it, knocking off the top three seeds to win the title.

(4) Le Moyne (34-17)

Manhattan looked set to run away with the Metro Atlantic, starting conference play 19-0. But the Dolphins stole their thunder, sweeping the Jaspers on the road late in the season and swiping the regular-season title, then did it again in the MAAC tournament to book their spot in the field of 64.

Southerncollegesports,com

Charlottesville Regional

The University of Virginia will be hosting for the second consecutive year in Charlottesville Virginia. They will be joined by Rutgers, Oregon State, and Lafayette.

Virginia

The Virginia Cavaliers (43-14) enter this weekend after winning two out of three games in the ACC Tournament. They did not qualify for the ACC Championship as they lost the head to head tiebreaker with North Carolina. They are led by a very strong pitching staff in Jacob Thompson and Sean Doolittle. Thompson has an overall record of 11-0 with an ERA of 1.35. (The CBB had the chance to see him pitch and a full report on him is available here.) Sean Doolittle is one of the top two-way players in the country as he has a record of 7-3 with a 2.57 ERA while batting .318 with 52 RBI. The Virginia offense is led by Brandon Guyer (.369) and David Adams (.368). They receive some bad news about two weeks ago when leadoff hitter and batting average leader Greg Miclat had surgery on a torn labrum and is out for the season. Virginia opens the tournament against Lafayette at 4 pm Friday.

Virginia Tourney Notes

Rutgers

The Rutgers Scarlet Knights made an impressive run through the Big East Tournament by coming through the loser's bracket before taking out UConn in the conference championship game by a 7-6 scoreline. Rutgers is led by All-American candidate Todd Frazier who is hitting .379 with 22 home runs and 64 RBI. He has also stolen 25 bases in 29 attempts. Dave Williams is the leading hitter on the team with a .408 batting average in 57 games. Steve Healing leads the pitching staff with a 10-3 overall record and an ERA of 3.56. Rutgers opens the tournament against defending champion Oregon State at 8 pm on Friday.

Rutgers Tourney Notes

Oregon State

The Oregon State Beavers are the defending champions and will head to Charlottesville after finishing in sixth place in the PAC-10. They have an overall record of 38-17 but were under .500 in the PAC 10 at a 10-14 mark. Mitch Canham is one of the top catchers in the country who will likely be drafted in the top five rounds in the upcoming draft. He leads the team in hitting with a .346 average and in homers with nine. The Oregon State pitching staff is led by Mike Stutes who has a 9-4 record and has struck out 101 hitters in 102.2 innings. Oregon State opens against Rutgers at 8 pm on Friday.

Oregon State Tourney Notes

Lafayette

The Lafayette Leopards (33-18) enter the weekend with the automatic bid from the Patriot League after sweeping the Army in the Championship series. Lafayette split with Ivy League Champion Brown last week in preparation for the NCAA Regionals. Lafayette is led by pitchers Kevin Reese and Matt Kamine. Reese is 7-1 with a 2.70 ERA in nine starts including four complete games. Kamine is 7-4 with a 2.72 ERA. The Leopards offense is led by James Conrad who has a .351 average with 48 stolen bases in 52 attempts. Jeff Butler has a .350 average also so he is also a player to watch.

Lafayette Tourney Notes

The CBB predicts Virginia to advance through the regional and the sleeper team in the regional is Rutgers with a potent lineup.

Tallahassee Regional Preview

The Florida State Seminoles was named the number 6 seed in the NCAA Baseball Tournament and was named the host of the Tallahassee Regional. They will be joined by Mississippi State, Stetson, and Bethune-Cookman.

Florida State (47-11)

The Florida State Seminoles enter this weekend after losing two out of three games in the ACC Tournament to put their overall record at 47-11. They are led by All-American candidates Bryan Henry and Tony Thomas Jr. Henry was named the ACC Pitcher of the Year after going a perfect 14-0 in his first 16 starts but picked up a loss in the ACC Tournament as he lost a 5-1 decision to Clemson. Tony Thomas Jr. has been hitting the ball well throughout the season as he is one of the top hitters in the country with his .442 average. He also has 32 doubles and 30 stolen bases in only 58 games. The Seminoles open the tournament by playing Bethune-Cookman at 7 pm on Friday.

FSU Tourney Notes

Mississippi State

The Mississippi State Bulldogs enter the NCAA Tourney with an at-large berth after finishing the season with a 33-20 overall record and 15-13 in the SEC. They are led by Brandon Turner who leads the team with a .407 batting average. Edward Easley leads the team with twelve homers on the season and is hitting at an impressive .373 average. The Bulldog starting pitching is weak with Justin Pigott leading the team in starts but has a 5-6 record with an ERA of 4.63. The other starting pitcher is Josh Johnson who is 2-3 with a 6.23 ERA in 12 starts. Mississippi State opens the tournament on Friday at 1pm when they play Stetson.

Mississippi State Tourney Notes

Stetson

The Stetson Hatters enter the weekend as the Regular Season Champion of the Atlantic Sun Conference and reached the semifinals of the Conference Tournament so they picked up an at-large berth with a 41-19 overall record. The Hatters are led by 27th year head coach Pete Dunn who has won over a thousand games in his illustrious career. They are led by a strong pitching staff which has a staff ERA of 3.65. The top starter is Corey Kluber who has an 11-2 record with a slim ERA of 2.19. Number 2 starter Chris Ingoglia has a 9-5 mark and 2.98 ERA with four complete games. Robbie Elsemiller is the closer on the team and has a record of 3-1 with 12 saves and an ERA of 2.32. Justin Bass leads the team in hitting with a batting average of .365 and Shane Jordan is right behind him at .355. Stetson opens the weekend at 1 pm against Mississippi State on Friday.

Stetson Tourney Notes

Bethune-Cookman

Bethune-Cookman won the MEAC Conference Tournament to receive the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. They enter the weekend with an overall record of 33-25. The head coach is Mervyl Melendez who is in his eighth season with the school. He is led by Angel Mercado who is hitting .400 for the season in 52 games. Dustin Blackwell is the top pitcher for BCC with a 8-5 record and a 2.86 ERA. After looking over the BCC roster, the coaching staff is making a strong commitment to recruiting kids from Puerto Rico to give them the opportunity to play college baseball.

BCC Tourney Notes

The CBB predicts that Florida State will win the regional but the sleeper team is Stetson with their strong pitching staff and could surprise some teams.

State of the Blog

The College Baseball Season is heading into the Postseason and The College Baseball Blog will be your ultimate source for Tournament News. The readers can expect full previews and recaps of every NCAA regional. We have seen immense growth over the last three months. We are thinking about taking the blog to our own server over this summer. If anyone has any ideas for the site or advertising ideas feel free to e-mail us by clicking here.

As always, The readers are encouraged to download Mozilla Firefox as it is the best web browser available and can be downloaded by clicking on the links on the site.

Penn Named Big 5 Team of the Year

The Penn Quakers were named the Big 5 Team of the Year. They finished the season with an overall record of 20-19 and lost in the Ivy League Playoffs to Brown. The Quakers also had three members of the team were honored with Todd Roth picking up three awards including Big 5 Co-Pitcher of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and All-Big 5. Joey Boaen earned Academic Big 5 honors while Penn Head Coach John Cole was named the Big 5 Coach of the Year. Full Release available here.

Conference USA baseball notebook

Four Conference USA teams will begin play in NCAA Regionals on Friday. Memphis will end a 13-year NCAA drought when it faces Michigan in the Nashville Regional. Rice will be playing in its 13th straight NCAA Championship, hosting Prairie View. Southern Miss is in the field for the fifth year in a row and will take on Troy in the Oxford Regional. East Carolina will make its eighth appearance in nine years when it makes the short drive to Chapel Hill.

Complete notebook

Houston Regional full of familiar faces

Because there are fewer than six degrees of separation between Rice coach Wayne Graham and New York Yankees legend Yogi Berra, it isn't a wild assumption to believe Graham muttered, "It's like déjà vu all over again" upon first glance at the Houston Regional field.

The NCAA baseball selection committee on Monday announced the pairings for the 64-team NCAA Tournament, and the four-team Houston Regional features three returnees from 2006: Rice (49-12), Baylor (34-25) and Prairie View (34-23).

The newcomer is TCU (46-12), which Rice has played six times in the past three seasons, including a three-game set at Reckling Park in 2005.

"It's a solid regional," said Graham, whose Owls are the No. 2 national seed and will host the Houston Regional at Reckling. (Vanderbilt is the tourney's No. 1 seed.)

"We played them all. TCU has great talent, and Baylor is on the upswing after finishing second in the Big 12 tournament. Prairie View has everybody back. They present a problem. They seem to play extremely well against us."

Outside of the lack of creativity on the part of the committee, few could quarrel with the bracketing of the regional.

CHRONICLE: Complete story

Six Big 12 Schools Earn Places in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship!

Texas (44-15) earns a top seed in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship. Baylor, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M also hold spots in the 64-team bracket.

Big 12.com

Texas (44-15), which was selected to host an NCAA regional for the 23rd time, was named the No. 1 seed for the regional in Round Rock. The Longhorns will be joined by No. 2 seed UC Irvine (40-15-1), No. 3 seed Wake Forest (33-27) and No. 4 seed Brown (27-19).

TexasSports.com

The Texas A&M baseball team will host Louisiana-Lafayette, Ohio State, and Le Moyne in the NCAA College Station Regional this weekend the NCAA announced on Monday

Texas A&M

The University of Missouri has been chosen as one of 16 schools to play host to NCAA Baseball Regional action, as announced today by the NCAA. The 11th-ranked Tiger baseball team, which finished second in the Big 12 Conference this season and sports a 40-16 overall record, will play host to a four-team, double-elimination tournament June 1st-4th at Taylor Stadium, with the winner advancing to a Super Regional site to be determined.

The 64-team field was announced on Monday. Joining the Tigers in the Columbia Regional will be Miami, Louisville and Kent State. Mizzou is the No. 1 seed in the regional and will face Kent State at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Miami and Louisville will play at 1 p.m.
Missouri Tigers

Baylor's baseball team received its 14^th invitation to the NCAA Tournament, the Division I Tournament Selection Committee announced Monday morning. The Bears are the No. 3 seed at the Houston Regional, hosted by Rice University at Reckling Park. Baylor faces second-seeded and 16^th-ranked TCU in the first round Friday, June 1, at 2 p.m. CDT.

Baylor Bears

The Nebraska baseball team will make its eighth NCAA Regional appearance in the last nine years this week, as the Huskers will travel to Arizona for the NCAA Tempe Regional.

The Huskers (30-25), who finished fourth in the Big 12, will take on Big West Conference champion UC Riverside (37-19) in Friday’s first match-up at 4 p.m. (central) from Winkles Field-Packard Stadium at Brock Ballpark.

Arizona State (43-13) is the region’s top seed and the No. 5 National Seed in the NCAA Tournament. They will take on Northeast Conference champion Monmouth (36-22-1) at 9 p.m. (central).

Nebraska Cornhuskers

The Oklahoma State Cowboys were awarded a No. 3 seed in the 2007 NCAA Fayetteville Regional in Fayetteville, Ark., it was announced Monday.

OSU finished third in the Big 12 Conference regular-season standings and will bring a 38-19 overall record into the the tournament. Joining the Cowboys in Fayetteville are host and top-seeded Arkansas, who owns a 41-19 record and is also the No. 7 national seed, along with second-seeded Creighton (44-14) and fourth-seeded Albany (29-27).

Oklahoma State Cowboys

C-USA lands four in NCAA Tournament

Conference USA has received four bids to the 2007 NCAA Baseball Championship, as announced by the Division I baseball committee on Monday. Rice will host the Houston Regional as the No. 2 national seed, while East Carolina will be the No. 2 seed in Chapel Hill, N.C., Southern Miss will be the No. 2 seed in Oxford, Miss. and Memphis will travel up the road to Nashville, Tenn. where it will compete as the No. 3 seed. Only the ACC (7), Big 12 (6) and SEC (5) had more selections than C-USA.

Rice (49-12) owns the fourth-best record in college baseball and is the No.2 ranked team in the latest polls. The Owls won the regular season Conference USA title with a 22-2 league record for the second straight year and followed that up by winning the C-USA Tournament in Greenville, N.C. with a 16-8 victory over host East Carolina on Sunday. Rice will be hosting a regional for the sixth time in seven years as it makes its 13th consecutive NCAA appearance. For the second straight year, the Owls will open regional play against SWAC champion Prairie View A&M (34-23) in its first game on Friday. Rice won the only regular season meeting between the teams, 5-4 on April 3. The Owls will then play one of two former Southwest Conference rivals in No. 2 seed TCU (46-12), Mountain West Conference Champions, or No. 3 seed Baylor (34-25), an at-large choice from the Big 12, in the next round.

East Carolina (39-21) returns to the NCAA Championship for the eighth time in nine seasons as the C-USA tournament runner-up heads down the road to Chapel Hill, N.C. The Pirates will play Western Carolina (40-18), an at-large choice from the Southern Conference, in the Chapel Hill regional. ECU defeated WCU, 3-2 on March 4 in Greenville. Host North Carolina (48-12), the number three national seed, will play Atlantic Sun Conference tournament champion Jacksonville (34-26), in the other Friday game in that regional.

Southern Miss (38-21) will be playing in the NCAA Championship for the fifth consecutive season. The second-seeded Golden Eagles are matched up with third-seeded Troy (34-25) for the second year in a row. Southern Miss dropped their only regular season meeting with the Trojans, falling 3-2 on February 25 in the Wiregrass Classic in Dothan, Ala. The two teams played a three-game series in Hattiesburg last year, which Southern Miss swept, but Troy defeated the Golden Eagles twice in the Tuscaloosa Regional to eliminate USM. Mississippi (37-23) will play Sam Houston State (38-22), Southland Conference tournament champions, in the other first-day game.

Memphis (36-24) will be making its first NCAA appearance since 1994 and the fifth in school history. Two years after finishing 13-42, the senior-led Tigers will be the No. 3 seed at the Nashville Regional and will face Big Ten Conference regular season champion Michigan (39-16), the No. 2 seed, in its first game. Number one overall national seed Vanderbilt (51-11), regular season and tournament champions of the Southeastern Conference, will square off against Ohio Valley Conference Tournament champion Austin Peay (39-20) in its first day game.

Rice Tournament Central
East Carolina Tournament Central
Southern Miss Tournament Central
Memphis Tournament Central

NCBWA May 28 Division I Poll

From NCBWA RELEASE

DALLAS - The National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association continues its
tradition of NCAA Division I polls for the 10th year with its 2007 weekly
surveys. Weekly polls will be circulated from Feb. 12-June 26 following the
NCAA World Series in Omaha, Neb. All 16 2007 NCAA Regional sites are being
hosted by NCBWA Top 30 members.

The poll voters come from 32 college baseball writers and related media persons
from throughout the nation. This week's poll has representation by 13
conferences (ties for a season-most) among the 293 baseball-playing schools in
the '07 NCAA Division I ranks, and 17 circuits have had teams in the polls in
'07. For more information or to join the NCBWA, please go to www.ncbwa.com.

Rank-School-Conference-Overall Record-Previous Rank
1 Vanderbilt Southeastern 51-11 1
2 Rice Conference USA 49-12 2
3 North Carolina Atlantic Coast 48-12 4
4 Texas Big 12 44-15 5
5 Arizona State Pacific-10 43-13 6
6 Florida State ACC 47-11 3
7 Virginia ACC 43-14 8
8 San Diego West Coast 43-16 9
9 South Carolina SEC 42-18 7
10 Coastal Carolina Big South 48-11 11
11 Texas A&M Big 12 44-16 13
12 Arizona Pacific-10 40-15 10
13 Arkansas SEC 41-19 17
14 Wichita State Missouri Valley 49-19 3-2 12
15 UC Irvine Big West 40-15-1 16
16 Clemson ACC 38-21 18
17 Missouri Big 12 40-16 14
18 Charlotte Atlantic 10 47-10 20
19 Long Beach State Big West 37-18 21
20 TCU Mountain West 46-12 22
21 Mississippi SEC 37-23 19
22 Oklahoma State Big 12 38-19 15
23 Creighton MVC 44-14 25
24 Louisiana-Lafayette Sun Belt 43-15 24
25 Oregon State Pac-10 38-17 23
26 Pepperdine West Coast 35-20 26
27 UC Riverside Big West 37-19 28
28 East Carolina C-USA 39-21 NR
29 NC State ACC 37-21 27
30 Oral Roberts Mid-Continent 40-15 NR

Others receiving votes (listed alphabetically): Cal State Fullerton (33-23), Miami (Fla.) (36-22), Michigan (39-16), Minnesota (40-16), Mississippi State (33-20), Ohio State (37-22), Oklahoma (34-24), Rutgers (41-19), St. John's (40-17), Southern Miss (37-21), Western Carolina (40-18).

Dropped Out: Cal State Fullerton (29), Miami (Fla.) (30)

By conference: Atlantic Coast 5, Big 12 4, Southeastern 4, Big West 3, Pacific-10 3, Conference USA 2, Missouri Valley 2, West Coast 2, Atlantic 10 1, Big South 1, Mid-Continent 1, Mountain West 1, Sun Belt 1.


-www.NCBWA.com-

2007 NCAA Tournament Bracket

The NCAA has released the 64 team field for the 2007 NCAA Tournament. The only major surprise is that Georgia Tech was left on the outside of the tournament field and the Big Ten received two at-large berths with Michigan and Minnesota. The full bracket is available here and The College Baseball Blog will provide full coverage of the tournament through the College World Series.

Vandy Baseball Recruit: Sonny Gray

The College Baseball Blog came across a video of Sonny Gray who recently committed to Vanderbilt. He will enter Vanderbilt in the fall of 2008 as he is only a junior.

Vandy wins SEC Title

The Vanderbilt Commodores fought through the loser's bracket to win the SEC title after knocking off Arkansas 7-4 in the Championship game on Sunday. The Commodores jumped on Razorback starter Dallas Keuchel (6-3) in the first inning when he allowed four runs (one earned) on five hits as he got the loss. The Razorbacks lifted him after the first inning when they brought on Chris Rhoads who pitched an effective five innings while letting up two runs. Tyler Rhoden (4-0) started for Vanderbilt and went 6.2 innings while letting up four runs on seven hits to get the victory. Brett Jacobsen pitched 2.1 scoreless innings to pick up his first save of the season. Ryan Flaherty led the offense for Vandy as he went 2-5 with two runs scored and an RBI. In a losing effort, Jeff Nutt went 3-4 for Arkansas.

News and Notes from Tournament

1) Ryan Flaherty continued his 30 game hitting streak for the Commodores.
2) Jess Todd from Arkansas struck out 17 batters including the first nine batters of the game against South Carolina on Thursday in only eight innings.
3) Vanderbilt is the first team since 1996 when the SEC went to this format to lose their first game of the Tournament and win the Conference Tournament.
4) Vanderbilt is also the first team since Alabama in the 1996 season to win the Regular Season and Conference Tournament titles.

All-SEC Tourney Team

2007 All-Tournament Team

P Jess Todd, Arkansas
P Nick Schmidt, Arkansas
C Shea Robin, Vanderbilt
1B Danny Hamblin, Arkansas
2B Tony Delmonico, Tennessee
3B Pedro Alvarez, Vanderbilt
SS Ryan Flaherty, Vanderbilt
OF Dominic de la Osa, Vanderbilt
OF Casey Coon, Arkansas
OF Justin Henry, Ole Miss
DH Jeff Lockwood, Tennessee

Most Valuable Player
Pedro Alvarez, Vanderbilt

Vandy Recap
Arkansas Recap
SEC Recap

UNC wins ACC Title

The North Carolina Tar Heels won the ACC Championship with a 3-2 victory over Wake Forest. Josh Horton hit a run scoring triple in the eighth inning to bring home Dustin Ackley from second base which broke a 2-2 tie. Luke Putkonen started for the Tar Heels and gave up two runs in 6.2 innings but got a no decision. Matt Danford (5-0) faced one batter to end the seventh inning and got the victory. Andrew Carignan got his 13th save by working the final two innings without allowing a run. Charlie Mellies got the start for the Deacons and went five innings while only giving up one run on four hits. He picked up a no-decision but this was a good sign since Mellies is just coming back from Tommy John surgery. Josh Ellis (5-3) entered the game in the eighth inning and continued his recent struggles as he gave up the winning run on one hit and walked one.

UNC Recap
Wake Forest Recap

Regional Sites Announced

The NCAA has released the 16 regional hosts for the upcoming 64 team tournament. There are no major surprises as Coastal Carolina and San Diego each got a regional. The full release from the NCAA is available here.

Host School and Location of Regional
Arizona St. (43-13), Tempe, Ariz.
Arkansas (41-18), Fayetteville, Ark.
Coastal Caro. (48-11), Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Florida St. (47-11), Tallahassee, Fla.
Long Beach St. (36-18), Long Beach, Calif.
Missouri (40-16), Columbia, Mo.
North Carolina (47-12), Chapel Hill, N.C.
Ole Miss (37-23), Oxford, Miss.
Rice (48-12), Houston, Texas
San Diego (42-16), San Diego, CA (at San Diego State)
South Carolina (42-18), Columbia, S.C.
Texas (44-15), Round Rock, Texas
Texas A&M (43-16), College Station, Texas
Vanderbilt (50-11), Nashville, Tenn
Virginia (43-14), Charlottesville, Va.
Wichita St. (49-19), Wichita, Kan.

C-USA Tournament: Saturday recap

The stage has been set for the championship game in the 2007 Conference USA Baseball Tournament and it’s just as expected – No. 1 vs. No. 2. It’s how they got there that was a surprise.

Rice, ranked No. 2 nationally, No. 1 in RPI and expected to get the top national seed when pairings are announced, saw its 20-game winning streak snapped in Saturday’s first game, falling to Memphis 2-1.

The Owls responded by scoring 20 runs on 20 hits in the nightcap, eliminating Memphis 20-9. The 29 combined runs tied a tournament record for most runs in a game.

The Tigers fell to 36-25 and await their postseason fate, which will be announced Monday.

The homestanding Pirates clinched their spot in between those two games, knocking off Tulane (34-26) behind the efforts of Harrison Eldridge and Stephen Batts, by a 9-4 score.

The two teams meet today for the championship at 1 p.m. EDT. The game will be replayed later in the day on CSTV.

SeBaseball Regional Projections

SEBaseball has updated their regional projections as of Saturday evening. The full projections are available by clicking here. I did Regional Projections last week that can be found here.

Wofford wins Southern Conference Title

FROM THE CITADEL PRESS RELEASE

Charleston, S.C. – Seventh-seeded The Citadel fell to No. 9 Wofford, 4-2, in the Southern Conference Championship Saturday night at Riley Park. The Bulldogs made it to the championship round for the second straight season, while the Terriers earned their first ever tournament crown.

The Bulldogs and Terriers both battled their way from the single-elimination round on Tuesday to make it to the championship game. The Dogs defeated Davidson, Western Carolina and Elon before falling to Wofford in game 13, 6-2. The Citadel returned to down Elon for the second time to challenge the Terriers for the tournament title, but Wofford remained undefeated as they were the lowest seed to ever win the crown in tourney history.

A pitchers’ duel developed in the first three innings as Bulldog hurler Matt Reifsnider only allowed two hits and retired seven straight from the end of the first through the end of the third. Terrier starter Austin Redwine did not allow a hit until the fourth inning when junior left fielder Chris Swauger belted a solo shot over the right field wall to give the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead.

The Citadel put two runners on in the fifth, but Austin forced three straight outs to get out of the frame. Wofford then took the lead in the sixth courtesy of a two-run shot off the bat of Brandon Waring. Waring, who was named the Tournament Most Valuable Player, set SoCon Tournament records in home runs (5), RBI (16), hits (14) and total bases (31).

The Terriers extended their lead to three in the seventh as Keith Munns smacked a run-scoring double down the left field line. Wofford pitched its way out of another jam in the bottom of the frame as senior right fielder Joe Hoerter and freshman shortstop Kyle Jordan registered back-to-back singles with two outs. Terrier shortstop Mike Gilmartin was called to the mound and forced a groundout to get out of the inning unharmed.

Designated hitter Shane Kirkley sent a 3-2 offering over the fence in left to make it 4-1 Wofford in the eighth before sophomore left-hander Matt Crim came in and shutdown the Terrier offense the rest of the night.

The Bulldogs attempted to come back in the ninth as sophomore right fielder Sonny Meade came in to pinch hit and ripped a line drive to left with one out. Freshman Chris McGuiness was then able to reach safely when John Brandt dropped a ball down the left field line. Sophomore Conrad Kellahan, the third Bulldog pinch-hitter of the inning, punched a base hit through the right side to load the bases with one out. Gilmartin registered a strikeout before Swauger drew a bases loaded walk and notched his second RBI of the evening. Gilmartin then fanned his third batter of the frame to preserve the 4-2 victory and pick up his eighth save of the season.

Reifsnider (3-5) enjoyed his best career start as he tossed five innings of shutout ball, scattering eight hits and allowing three runs. The freshman collected five strikeouts and did not surrender a single walk in his 6.1 innings of work. Redwine (7-5) earned his second victory of the tournament as he threw 6.2 frames, giving up a single run on four hits while striking out four and walking two.

Freshman Raymond Copenhaver and senior Justin Smith tied the tournament record for most appearances with five as they were called to the mound against the Terriers. Crim matched the lowest ever earned run average over nine innings as he posted a 0.00 ERA and picked up a victory over his two outings and closed the final two frames.

The Bulldogs put together an outstanding run in the SoCon Tournament after finishing 12-15 and having to participate in the play-in game as the seven seed. The Citadel turned in clutch pitching performances as sophomores Wes Wrenn and Matt Crim combined to throw 13 shutout innings in the first two games to lead the Bulldogs to a 7-0 win over No. 10 Davidson and sent No. 2 Western Carolina to the loser’s bracket with a 7-2 victory. Senior closer Links Saunders registered back-to-back saves over the Catamounts and Elon as he posted a 0.00 ERA in three appearances while striking out seven. The Bulldog pitching staff combined for a 2.42 ERA over six games to lead all SoCon teams during the tourney.

Freshman second baseman Bryan Altman was the hero of the Dogs’ third tournament game as he crushed his first career grand slam to give The Citadel a 6-5 edge over No. 3 Elon. After falling to Wofford, the Dogs returned on Saturday to face Elon again where Wrenn earned his second tournament victory holding the Phoenix to only two runs during his seven innings of work, while Jones and Altman paced the Bulldog offense in the 5-2 win.

Senior Joe Hoerter led The Citadel at the plate as he batted .467 during the tournament after receiving his first career start less than a month ago. Hoerter turned in a .314 batting average to finish out his senior campaign.

Freshman of the Year Richard Jones and Swauger each belted three round-trippers during the tournament while Swauger tallied 24 total bases and seven RBI. Swauger and Meade both registered an average above .400 during the six-game span, while Jones and Brown batted .360 and .348, respectively.

The Citadel finished out the regular season with a 34-27 overall record and enjoyed two huge wins over nationally ranked foes. The Dogs had four players recognized as All-SoCon performers in 2007 as Brown was awarded first team accolades and Swauger, Jones and Meade were all named to the second team. Brown, Jones and Swauger also earned All-Tournament accolades as Swauger was tabbed All-Tournament for the second year in a row. Below is a complete list of the 2007 All-Tournament squad.

2007 All-Tournament Team

C – Richard Jones (The Citadel)

1B – Zach Brown (The Citadel)

2B – Eric Sturkie (Wofford)

SS – Mike Gilmartin (Wofford)

3B – Brandon Waring (Wofford)

OF – Pat Irvine (Elon)

OF – Sean Snell (UNC Greensboro)

OF – Chris Swauger (The Citadel)

DH – Andrew Franco (Appalachian State)

P – Ben Austin (Wofford)

MVP – Brandon Waring (Wofford)

Rutgers wins Big East Title

FROM UCONN PRESS RELEASE

BROOKLYN, N.Y. (May 26, 2007) - Bidding to become the first team in BIG EAST Tournament history to lose its first game and then go on to win the championship, the University of Connecticut baseball team fell just short of etching its name in the conference record books as the No. 8 seed Huskies fell to second-seeded Rutgers, 7-6, Saturday afternoon from KeySpan Park.

Despite the loss, UConn's appearance in the championship game marked the lowest seed in BIG EAST Tournament history to reach the final game.  In addition, the 2007 league tournament featured a conference-best four total shutouts through the course of the week.  UConn boasts two of the four shutouts as the Huskies blanked USF in two consecutive games Friday to reach the championship game.

UConn held a Rutgers offense that entered the championship game averaging 11.4 hits per game during the tournament to just six hits, but also committed three errors in the field.   In fact, the Huskies out-hit Rutgers by an 11-6 tally.

The Huskies continued to battle and nearly completed an improbable comeback as the Huskies rallied for five runs in the top of the ninth inning.  Senior first baseman Matt Untiet (Berlin, Conn.) singled through the right side to start the inning before coming around to score on the following play as junior third baseman Pat Mahoney (Des Moines, Iowa) laced a double into left field to chase starting pitcher Steve Healing.  After the next Husky was retired on a groundout, senior right fielder Josh Farkes (Boston, Mass.) doubled into left-center field to drive in Mahoney.  Junior center fielder Gordon Stevens (Vista, Calif.) singled to center on the next play to put runners on the corners, and both runners advanced one base on a balk.  On the following play, freshman left fielder Pete Fatse (Hampden, Mass.) homered to right field to pull the Huskies within one.  Sophomore second baseman Dale Brannon (St. Petersburg, Fla.) next reached with a bloop single into center field, but Scarlet Knight reliever Kevin Lillis retired the next to batters to preserve the win for Rutgers.

Backed by an early lead, Rutgers starting pitcher Steve Healing pitched eight innings and allowed three runs on seven hits to earn his 10th win of the season.  Lillis earned the save for his third of the season.

Husky freshman starting pitcher Robert Van Woert (Johnson City, N.Y.) suffered the loss despite an effective outing on just three days rest.  Van Woert allowed four runs (three earned) on three hits in four innings on the hill.

Rutgers (41-19) struck first in the contest as the Scarlet Knights plated three runs in the bottom of the first inning.  Both BIG EAST Player of the Year Todd Frazier and second baseman Mike Bionde drew walks to open the frame.  Husky starting pitcher Robert Van Woert (Johnson City, N.Y.) retired the next two hitters on fly outs to left field to keep both runners on their respective bases.  On the following play, Rutgers scored its first run of the inning on a throwing error charged to Husky catcher Larry Day (Amesbury, Mass.) attempting to catch Bionde stealing second base.  After first baseman Tom Edwards drew a walk to put runners on the corners, designated hitter Jon Gossard hit an RBI single into left field to score Bionde.  In addition, Edwards came around to score as Husky right fielder Josh Farkes (Boston, Mass.) was charged with a fielding error.

Connecticut (34-27) answered with a run in the top of the second inning to cut the Rutgers lead to just two.  Junior third baseman Pat Mahoney (Des Moines, Iowa) laced a single off Healing's glove, allowing the ball to trickle into an empty area on the infield.  After taking second on a fielder's choice, Mahoney came around to score on the following play as Farkes ripped an RBI double into the right field corner.

Frazier, the 2007 BIG EAST Tournament Jack Kaiser Award Winner, put the Scarlet Knights ahead 4-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning with his conference-leading 22nd home run of the season.  Four batters later, Edwards delivered an RBI double to deep center field to give Rutgers a four-run edge.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, Rutgers tacked on another two runs on a two-run home run into left-center field from catcher Frank Meade to put the Scarlet Knights up 7-1.

Individually, Farkes paced the Huskies at the plate with a 3-for-4 showing with two RBIs, while Mahoney, Fatse and Brannon also chipped in with two hits apiece.

ACC Tournament Day 4 Recap

NC State 8 Georgia Tech 7 (Final)

In the opening game on Saturday, The NC State Wolfpack picked up an 8-7 victory over Georgia Tech. Both teams were eliminated before the game from making the championship game on Saturday so the game could only change the seedings for the upcoming NCAA Tournament as both teams are expected to receive at large berths. NC State started Jimmy Gillheeney who has been struggling recently and it continued on Saturday as he let up five runs in five innings. He ended up with a no-decision as Eryk McConnell picked up the victory by working the final 3.1 innings without allowing a run. His record goes to 3-2. Georgia Tech used this game to get some work for the pitching staff as they used six different pitchers. Matt Wieters (1-4) ended up getting the loss as he gave up a Caleb Mangum infield RBI single in the ninth. Marcus Jones went 4-5 and Dallas Poulk went 3-4 to lead the Pack offensive attack while Patrick Long led the Jackets by going 3-5 with three runs scored.

NC State Recap
GT Recap

North Carolina 5 Virginia 0 (Final)

Alex White (6-4) pitched seven shutout innings against the high powered offense of Virginia to give the Tar Heels a 5-0 victory and advance to the ACC Championship game on Sunday. White only gave up two hits and four walks over those seven innings. Andrew Carignan pitched two scoreless innings to get his 12th save. Casey Lambert (2-2) got the start for UVA and was effective but gave up two runs over seven innings as he was tagged with the loss. Reid Fronk led the Tar Heels with two RBI and two hits. John Scaglione was the only Cavalier with two hits in the game. UNC will take on Wake Forest for the ACC title at 1 pm on Sunday.

UNC Recap
UVA Recap
Daily Progress Recap

Clemson 5 FSU 1 (Final)

The Clemson Tigers kept their hopes alive of an ACC Championship game appearance as they defeated the Florida State Seminoles 5-1 in Day 4 of the ACC Tournament. Bryan Henry (14-1) picked up his first loss of the season by giving up four runs in 5.1 innings. David Kopp (6-2) pitched a complete game and gave up an unearned run in the top of the ninth while striking out seven strikeouts. Addison Johnson, J.D. Burgess, Taylor Harbin, and Marquez Smith each had two hits to lead the Tigers offense. Jack Rye went 3-4 to lead the Seminoles in the losing effort.

Clemson Recap
FSU Recap

Wake Forest 7 Miami 3 (Final)

The Wake Forest Demon Deacons picked up a big victory and got the help they needed to advance to the ACC Championship game as they defeated the Miami Hurricanes 7-3 in the final game of the round robin round of the ACC Tournament. Allan Dykstra finally did some damage tonight when I was watching as he hit a home run to tied the game at 2 in the third inning as he went 2-4 with 3 RBI including the homer. Ben Hunter (7-6) gave the Deacons six innings while giving up two runs to get the win. Enrique Garcia (7-4) got the loss for the Canes as he only lasted 4.1 innings while giving up five runs. Jemile Weeks went 2-4 in the losing effort. Wake Forest will play North Carolina at 1 pm for the ACC title and have likely clinched an at-large berth for the NCAA Tournament. Miami will wait until the brackets come out to find out where they will be heading.

Wake Forest Recap
Miami Recap

The CBB takes in Northeast Conference Championsips

The College Baseball Blog made the trip down to New Britain Connecticut to see the championship games of the Northeast Conference on Saturday afternoon. Monmouth entered the championship round without a loss in the tournament while Central Connecticut State had one loss.

In Game 1, The Blue Devils got 8.2 innings of great pitching from Adam Piechowski as they took care of the Monmouth Hawks 4-2. The Blue Devils offense was led by Adam Taha who went 2-3 at the plate and provided a solid game behind the plate as he blocked several pitches in the dirt to hold runners on their respective bases. Andy Meyers led the Hawks offense by going 3-4 with a double. The win by CCSU forced a deciding game later in the day.

CCSU Recap
Monmouth Recap

In Game 2, Monmouth starting pitcher Matt Coulson (4-3) pitched 7.2 innings while letting up only one run on five hits. He was effective at getting the Blue Devils to hit the ball at his fielders as he only had two strikeouts on the day. Both of them came with runners on second and third with one out in the fifth inning with a 2-0 Hawks lead. Justin Esposito pitched a perfect 1.2 innings to get his tenth save. CCSU starter John Tesseyman lasted only two innings as he gave up two runs on four hits. His record for the season drops down to 6-4. John Dennis went 2-2 with 3 RBI and a sacrifice bunt to lead the Monmouth offense.

Monmouth Recap
CCSU Recap

The College Baseball Blog would like to give thanks to the great community of New Britain for putting on a fine event. This was one of the better experiences on the season as the College Baseball Blog might not see anymore College Baseball live this season due to logistics. The CBB will likely be heading to the Cape Cod League throughout the summer to check in on some college players.

New Orleans wins Sunbelt Title

New Orleans took the Sun Belt title by knocking off Louisiana 8-2. Stephen Whalen (7-5) pitched three shutout innings in relief to pick up the victory for the Privateers while Ragin' Cajuns starter Buddy Glass lasted only 4.1 innings while giving up four runs to drop his record to 7-4. Johnny Giavotella went 2-3 with a homer and two runs scored to lead the Privateers offense. Josh Logan went 3-4 in the losing effort for Louisiana. Both teams will await the NCAA seedings which are released on Monday.

UNO Recap
Louisiana Recap
Daily Advertiser Recap

Wofford wins 6-2 over The Citadel

FROM THE CITADEL PRESS RELEASE

Charleston, S.C. – No. 9 Wofford defeated seventh-seeded The Citadel, 6-2, in their very first meeting in tournament history Friday afternoon in the third round of the Southern Conference Tournament at Riley Park. Eric Sturkie’s solo home run in the second proved to be the game-winner as he paced the Terriers with two RBI on the day. The Bulldogs will play the winner of the Elon-UNC Greensboro game Friday night to figure out who they will face Saturday, May 26 at noon at Riley Park.

The Bulldogs’ only runs were scored by two homers as junior left fielder Chris Swauger and freshman catcher Richard Jones each belted a round-tripper in the contest. Unfortunately it was not enough for the Dogs even though they matched Wofford’s 11 hits.

Swauger, Jones and senior first baseman Zach Brown each collected two hits on the day. Brown ripped his 21^st double of the season, tying him for fifth place in single-season two-baggers, along with Swauger who hit that mark in 2006. Brown is also tied for fifth in all-time doubles with 52.

Freshman lefty Nick Sprowls (0-2) suffered the loss in only his second career start as the went 1.2 frames, allowing three runs on five hits while striking out and walking one. Terrier starter Ben Austin (11-5) earned his second win of the tourney after taking a 5-3 victory over Furman in the first game of the single-elimination round. Austin tossed 5.2 innings as he was responsible for both homers and surrendered eight hits while fanning two and walking one.

The Citadel jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first with Swauger’s solo shot over the right field wall. Wofford did not stay behind long as the Terriers answered back with two of their own. Michael Gilmartin punched a single through the left side to start things off and moved to second on a sac bunt. Shane Kirkley then tripled to the gap in right center to plate Gilmartin. Brandon Waring followed that up with a base hit to left to drive in Kirkley and give Wofford a 2-1 advantage.

Sturkie added to the Terrier lead in the second as he registered a solo job just inside the right field foul pole. Freshman catcher Richard Jones pulled the Bulldogs back within one in the fourth as he went deep for the third time in four games to make it 3-2. Jones now has 15 round-trippers on the season to lead the club.

A Bulldog error in the fifth led to three unearned runs to put Wofford up by four. Adam Wood notched an infield single with one out before Sterling Dye bunted one back to the mound that was mishandled, allowing Dye to reach safely while putting Wood on second. Keith Munns drew a walk to load the bases for Sturkie who lifted a sac fly to right to drive in Wood. Gilmartin notched a double to push Dye across the dish. Munns then raced home on a wild pitch before Bulldog hurler Link Saunders forced a groundout to get out of the inning.

The Citadel put three runners in scoring position over the final four frames, but was unable to push any across. The Dogs even threatened in the ninth with two outs as they put runners on first and second, but Terrier closer Charles Vartanian caught the final batter looking to preserve the 6-2 win and pick up the save. Vartanian closed out the final 3.1 frames and held the Dogs to only three hits while not giving up any runs and striking out five.

Saunders posted another solid outing after recording a save in each of the last two Citadel victories. The right-hander relieved Justin Smith in the fifth and held the Terriers scoreless and only allowed one hit while fanning three and walking one. Smith registered four strikeouts of his own, also in three innings of work.

No. 7 The Citadel will return to tournament action on Saturday, May 26 at noon and will either have a rematch with No. 3 Elon or will face No. 5 UNC Greensboro.

Northeast Conference Tournament Day 2 Recap

Monmouth 7 Central Connecticut State 1

Monmouth advance to the Northeast Conference Championship game with a 7-1 victory over Central Connecticut State in a winner bracket game on Friday afternoon. Monmouth got six innings from Ryan Buch as he let up one run on five hits to up his record to 9-2. Kyle Breese pitched three scoreless innings while giving up only one hit to pick up his first save of the season. The offense leader for the Hawks was Kyle Messineo who went 4-4. CCSU starter Ken Kerski only lasted 3.1 innings while giving up five runs to drop his record to 7-2.

Monmouth Recap
CCSU Recap

Quinnipiac 4 Mount St. Mary's 1

The Bobcats kept their hopes alive of a NEC Conference Championship by knocking off Mount St. Mary's in an elimination game 4-1. Quinnipiac starter Pat Egan pitched a complete game three hitter as he kept the Mount St. Mary's offense off balance throughout the game and send the Bobcats to another elimination game to follow later in the evening. Egan's record on the season goes to 4-3 while Mount St. Mary's starter Andrew Germuth gets the loss to drop to 8-5. The Bobcat offense was led by Tim Binkoski who went 3-4 with two RBI and a run scored.

Quinnipiac Recap
Mount St. Mary's Recap

Central Connecticut State 5 Quinnipiac 0

The Central Connecticut State Blue Devils ended intrastate rival Quinnipiac's season with a 5-0 shutout victory in the last game on Friday evening which was an elimination game for each squad. Pat Scribner was masterful as he pitched a complete game shutout while striking out twelve batters and walking none. His record goes to 6-6 while Quinnipiac starter Chris Gloor gets the loss to drop his record to 4-2. The Blue Devils advance to the Championship game on Saturday against Monmouth where they have to defeat the Hawks twice to win the NEC Championship and get a spot in the NCAA Regionals.

CCSU Recap
Quinnipiac Recap

The NEC has recaps of every game available by clicking here.

The CBB is expected to be in attendance for the Championship game(s) on Saturday and will provide a full report from New Britain Stadium.

C-USA Game 10: Tulane 6, Southern Miss 2

Tulane broke open a one-run game in the sixth inning by adding three to its tally and tacked on another in the seventh to pull away from Southern Miss and grab a 6-2 victory in game ten of the 2007 C-USA Baseball Championship at Clark-LeClair Stadium on the campus of East Carolina University. The victory was Tulane head coach Rick Jones' 600th at the helm of the Green Wave and propelled his team into a Saturday semifinal game against No. 2 East Carolina at 12:30 p.m. EDT.

Tulane (34-25) grabbed the early lead on an Anthony Scelfo solo home run to right field in the bottom of the first. The Wave then went up 2-0 when Aja Barto hit his sixth home run of the season in the bottom of the fifth.

Southern Miss (38-21) cut the lead to 2-1 in the top of the sixth inning after Michael Ewing crushed his seventh home run over the right field fence. The ball not only cleared the outfield wall, but the fence separating the baseball stadium from the football practice fields.

In the sixth, Tulane used two hits to score three runs and pull away from the Golden Eagles.

Game story

ACC Tournament Day 3 Recap

Wake Forest 3 Clemson 2 (Final)

Brett Linenkohl scored the tying run in the eighth inning and then in the bottom of the ninth drove home the winning run to lead Wake Forest to the 3-2 victory over Clemson. Brad Kledzik started for Wake Forest and gave them 7.1 innings while giving up six hits and two runs. Eric Nielsen picked up the victory by pitching the final 1.2 innings while giving up only one walk. Clemson starter Ryan Hinson 6.1 innings while giving up only one run but got a no-decision. Stephen Clyne pitched the ninth inning for the Tigers and gave up the winning run which was unearned in 0.2 innings. Wake Forest will take on Miami at 7 pm Saturday.

Wake Forest Recap
Clemson Recap

Miami 9 Florida State 3

Eric Erickson picked up his tenth victory of the season by giving up three runs in eight innings as the Hurricanes defeated Florida State 9-3 in Day 3 of the ACC Tournament. Ryan Strauss got the loss for the Seminoles as he gave up five runs in 4.2 innings. His record drops to 9-3. The Hurricanes were led on offense by Jemile Weeks who went 3-5 with 3 RBI and two runs scored. Tony Thomas Jr. led the Noles offense with a homer and a double while going 2-4. Florida State needs some help to get to the ACC Championship game as they need to defeat Clemson tomorrow at 4 pm and have Wake Forest defeat Miami in the nightcap.

Miami Recap
FSU Recap

C-USA Game 9: Memphis 12, UCF 6

In the first game of "Elimination Friday" in the Conference USA baseball tournament, Memphis left no doubt as to who would be moving on and who would be heading home. The Tigers scored five runs in the first and four in the second and cruised to a 12-6 victory over Central Florida. Ben Grisham went the distance for Memphis, allowing only four earned runs and striking out five.

Joey Lieberman highlighted the first-inning UM attack, smacking a three-run shot over left field that crossed the street behind the stadium before stopping. Three Golden Knight errors aided Memphis' efforts in the second inning. A pair of Tiger errors and a Dwayne Bailey triple helped UCF get on the board in the fourth, cutting the Memphis lead to 9-3.

Memphis will face Rice in a 9 a.m. EDT contest on Saturday. Central Florida finishes its season at 27-32.