College World Series Tickets

Group of Teams Almost Decided for 2009 CWS

Seven of the Eight teams have been decided for the 2009 College World Series.  The last team will be confirmed tonight after the 6:00 PM game between the Texas Long Horns and the TCU Horned Frogs.

There is a nice mix of old and new teams this year for the CWS in Omaha.  Stalwarts ASU, Cal State Fullerton, and LSU all made the tournament again and will be a dominant force against some fairly new teams.  North Carolina and Arkansas have some experience in the history of the CWS, with the Tar Heels making their fourth consecutive trip to Rosenblatt Stadium this year. The last time the Razorbacks were in Omaha was in 2004, but they look strong enough to win the whole Series this year.

The newcomers to the group are the Virginia Cavaliers and the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles.  Not only do the Golden Eagles have possibly the coolest mascot name but their team is the likely choice for local fans who like to root for the underdog.  The Golden Eagles have never competed in the College World Series and were not even expected to make it to Regional tournament play.  After knocking off Florida in the Super Regional, Coach Corky Palmer and his boys have gained some well deserved respect from everyone.  This is Palmer's last year as a coach, he will retire after the College World Series.

Although Texas is the number one seed and is highly favored to win the tournament, they have yet to secure a spot in Omaha.  Cal State Fullerton, the number two seed, will look to clench their fifth championship this year.  The Titans won the CWS in 2004 and have visited Omaha 16 times in the school's history.  Head Coach Dave Serrano, who famously coached UC Irvine to the College World Series in a Cinderella run, is now the active coach for the Titans.  He took them to the CWS a year after he started coaching for them and is looking for his first championship.

LSU, Fresno State are final two in College World Series

The two remaining super regionals wrapped up Monday night, as LSU and Fresno State will join Miami (Fla.), Georgia, Stanford, Florida State, North Carolina and Rice in the 2008 College World Series.

Here's a wrap-up of Monday's super regional finales:

LSU blows out UC Irvine

LSU exploded for six runs and never let UC Irvine even think about a late rally, blowing out the Anteaters 21-7 to earn a trip to the College World Series.

LSU came back from the dead in Sunday's second game, and that momentum carried over into the start of Monday's game. Ryan Schimpf hit a pair of home runs and had five RBI's, and Blake Dean went 5-for-5 with a home run and three RBI's to highlight the Tiger explosion.

Jordan Brown got the win in relief for LSU, which played its last game in its old Alex Box Stadium to a record crowd of 8,173.

Bulldogs pull off historical upset

Fresno State made history Monday night, becoming the first No. 4 seed from a regional to advance to the College World Series.

It wasn't easy, though -- the Bulldogs saw a seven-run lead trimmed to the point where Matt Newman came to the plate as the winning run, and Fresno State got out of the bases-loaded jam to win 12-9 and earn a trip to the College World Series.

Newman hit a pair of home runs for the Sun Devils, the second giving Arizona State a 5-4 lead in the fifth. Fresno State tied the game in the sixth, then exploded for six runs in the seventh, capped by a bases-clearing double by Erik Wetzel and a two-run bomb by Steve Susdorf, to take a seemingly-insurmountable 12-5 advantage into the ninth.

The Sun Devils rallied, but it wasn't enough as they lost a regional series at home for the first time since 2001.

The 2008 College World Series gets underway Saturday, June 14 with opening-round games in the double-elimination tournament Saturday and Sunday. First-round games and start times (times are Central) are as follows:

Saturday, June 15 -- GAME 1: Stanford (39-22-2) vs. Florida State (54-12), 1 p.m.; GAME 2: Miami Fla. (52-9) vs. Georgia (41-23-1), 6 p.m.

Sunday, June 16 -- GAME 3: North Carolina (51-12) vs. LSU (48-17-1), 1 p.m.; GAME 4: Rice (47-13) vs. Fresno State (42-29), 6 p.m.

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Road teams successful in super regionals Friday

Super regional play got underway Friday afternoon, and three of the four road teams put their hosts on the brink of elimination. Here is a breakdown of results from the opening day of the final weekend before the College World Series:

Georgia handles Wolfpack

Georgia moved to within one win of their third CWS appearance in five years with a convincing 11-4 win over North Carolina State.

Trevor Holder was solid on the mound for the Bulldogs, going 8 2/3 innings to get the win. He got plenty of offensive support, led by Gordon Beckham, who gave Georgia the lead for good with a two-run double in the third.

Joey Lewis and Miles Starr both drove in a pair for the Bulldogs, who have won five straight since opening tournament play with a loss to Lipscomb.

Shockers outlast Seminoles

Conor Gillaspie is an Omaha native, and he helped Wichita State draw first blood in Tallahassee, Fla., on Friday with a key three-run homer that sparked a four-run sixth inning to help the Shockers to a 10-7 win.

Josh Workman had three hits for the Shockers and Rob Musgrave pitched 5 2/3 innings to get the win for Wichita State.

Florida State lost its first game in regionals, but came roaring back to advance to this round last weekend. They'll need to win the final two games of the series to earn a trip to Omaha.

Extra-inning heroics for Arizona

Arizona and top-seeded Miami were locked in a classic battle in their first game Friday evening, and it took some extra-inning heroics for the visiting Wildcats to come away with a 6-3 win in 11 innings.

Jon Gaston's three-run blast to right in the top of the inning came with two outs and broke the tie to give Arizona the one-game advantage. Relief pitcher Carlos Gutierrez looked to be cruising in the inning before hitting Colt Sedbrook with an 0-2 pitch. He gave up a single to Brad Glenn, then the decisive blast to Gaston.

Jason Stoffel picked up the win in relief, striking out five in three innings.

Stanford hangs on for 4-3 win

Stanford struck early, then hung on to beat Cal State Fullerton 4-3 to take a one-game lead in the best-of-three series.

Jeremy Bleich had an inspiring effort in his first win since being out of the lineup for almost two months with tendonitis in his pitching elbow. He pitched six strong innings and allowed just three hits to help Stanford post its fourth straight win over the Titans this season.

Jason Castro and Sean Ratliff both hit homers for the Cardinal. Erik Komatsu hit a two-run homer in the eight for the hosts, but it wasn't enough.

Game two of each of the above series is scheduled for Saturday. Any third games that are needed will be played Sunday.

Four super regionals begin play on Saturday. Those machups, with local start times, are:

Coastal Carolina at North Carolina, 12 p.m.

Texas A&M at Rice, 2 p.m.

UC Irvine at LSU, 5 p.m.

Fresno State at Arizona State, 6 p.m.

Super regional start times noted

Super regionals get under way Friday as the 16-team field is reduced to the final eight that will play in the College World Series beginning Saturday, June 14.

The start times for the eight super-regionals are noted below. Teams in the left bracket will play games Friday, Saturday and Sunday if needed. Teams competing in the right bracket play games Saturday, Sunday and Monday if needed. All times noted are local start times.

Left Bracket

Arizona at Miami (Fla.) -- Game 1: 7 p.m.; Game 2: 7:30 p.m.; Game 3: 7 p.m.

North Carolina State at Georgia -- Game 1: 12 p.m.; Game 2: 12 p.m.; Game 3: 4 p.m.

Stanford at Cal State Fullerton -- Game 1: 7:30 p.m.; Game 2: 4:30 p.m.; Game 3: 4 p.m.

Wichita State at Florida State -- Game 1: 2 p.m.; Game 2: 12 p.m.; Game 3: 1 p.m.

Right Bracket

Coastal Carolina at North Carolina -- Game 1: 12  p.m.; Game 2: 1 p.m.; Game 3: 12:30 p.m. or 7 p.m.

UC Irvine at LSU -- Game 1: 5 p.m.; Game 2: 3 p.m.; Game 3: 6 p.m.

Texas A&M at Rice -- Game 1: 2 p.m.; Game 2: 6 p.m.; Game 3: 11:30 a.m. or 6 p.m.

Fresno State at Arizona State -- Game 1: 6 p.m.; Game 2: 7 p.m.; Game 3: 4 p.m.

Super regional field is set

The field has been set for super regionals after six regionals completed play Monday.

Results of Monday's regional finals and this weekend's super regional matchups are as follows:

Left Bracket

at Stanford (Calif.) -- Stanford def. Pepperdine 9-7. STANFORD advances

at Athens (Ga.) -- Georgia def. Georgia Tech 18-6. GEORGIA advances

at Fullerton (Calif.) -- Cal State Fullerton def. UCLA 5-4. CAL STATE FULLERTON advances

at Tallahassee (Fla.) -- Florida State def. Tulane 16-7. FLORIDA STATE advances

Right Bracket

at College Station (Texas) -- Texas A&M def. Houston 13-5. TEXAS A&M advances

at Long Beach (Calif.) -- Fresno State def. San Diego 5-1. FRESNO STATE advances

Super Regional Matchups

Left Bracket

Games are Friday, Saturday and Sunday (if necessary)

Arizona at (1) Miami (Fla.)

North Carolina State at (8) Georgia

Stanford at (5) Cal State Fullerton

Wichita State at (4) Florida State

Right Bracket

Games are Saturday, Sunday and Monday (if necessary)

Coastal Carolina at (2) North Carolina

UC Irvine at (7) LSU

Texas A&M at (6) Rice

Fresno State at (3) Arizona State

Teams advance to super regionals

Ten of the 16 regionals were decided Sunday in the NCAA Div. I baseball tournament. Here are Sunday's results along with the Monday games that will decide the final super-regional teams:

Left Bracket

At Miami (Fla.) -- Ole Miss def. Missouri 9-6 (Missouri eliminated), Miami (Fla.) def. Ole Miss 11-2. MIAMI (FLA.) advances

At Ann Arbor (Mich.) -- Kentucky def. Michigan 12-6 (Michigan eliminated), Arizona def. Kentucky 5-3. ARIZONA advances

At Raleigh (N.C.) -- South Carolina def. James Madison 7-5 (James Madison deliminated), North Carolina State def. South Carolina 2-1. NORTH CAROLINA STATE advances

At Athens (Ga.) -- Georgia def. Lipscomb 14-3 (Georgia eliminated), Georgia def. Georgia Tech 8-0. Georgia and Georgia Tech will play again Monday to determine regional winner.

At Fullerton (Calif.) -- Cal State Fullerton def. Virginia 4-1 (Virginia eliminated), Cal State Fullerton def. UCLA 11-8. Cal State Fullerton and UCLA will play again Monday to determine regional winner.

At Stanford (Calif.) -- Stanford def. UC Davis 8-4 (UC Davis eliminated), Stanford def. Pepperdine 13-1. Stanford and Pepperdine will play again Monday to determine regional winner.

At Stillwater (Okla.) -- Oklahoma State def. TCU 9-8 (TCU eliminated), Wichita State def. Oklahoma State 11-7. WICHITA STATE advances

At Tallahassee (Fla.) -- Florida State def. Bucknell 24-9 (Bucknell eliminated), Florida State def. Tulane 17-8. Florida State and Tulane will play again Monday to determine regional winner.

Right Bracket

At Cary (N.C.) -- UNC-Wilmington def. Elon 15-11 (Elon eliminated), North Carolina def. UNC-Wilmington 7-3. NORTH CAROLINA advances

At Conway (S.C.) -- East Carolina def. Alabama 16-1 (Alabama eliminated), Coastal Carolina def. East Carolina 24-11. COASTAL CAROLINA advances

At Lincoln (Neb.) -- Oral Roberts def. Nebraska 8-0 (Nebraska eliminated), UC Irvine def. Oral Roberts 8-0. UC IRVINE advances

At Baton Rouge (La.) -- Southern Miss def. New Orleans 8-2 (New Orleans eliminated), LSU def. Southern Miss 11-4. LSU advances

At Houston (Texas) -- Texas def. St. John's 4-3 (Texas eliminated), Rice def. Texas 7-4. RICE advances

At College Station (Texas) -- Houston def. Illinois-Chicago 14-11 (Illinois-Chicago eliminated), Houston def. Texas A&M 4-3. Houston and Texas A&M will play again Monday to determine regional winner.

At Long Beach (Calif.) -- San Diego def. Long Beach State 5-1 (Long Beach State eliminated), San Diego def. Fresno State 15-1. San Diego and Fresno State will play again Monday to determine regional winner.

At Tempe (Ariz.) -- Oklahoma def. Vanderbilt 11-10 (Vanderbilt eliminated), Arizona State def. Oklahoma 12-0. ARIZONA STATE advances

Saturday's regional results

Saturday's regional tournament results are as follows:

Left Bracket

At Miami (Fla.) -- Ole Miss def. Bethune-Cookman 14-1 (B-C eliminated), Miami (Fla.) def. Missouri 6-5

At Ann Arbor (Mich.) -- Michigan def. Kentucky 7-5 (completion of suspended game), Kentucky def. Eastern Michigan 4-3 (E. Michigan eliminated), Arizona def. Michigan 4-3

At Raleigh (N.C.) -- James Madison def. Charlotte 13-12 (Charlotte eliminated), N.C. State def. South Carolina 5-4

At Athens (Ga.) -- Georgia def. Louisville 9-8 (Georgia eliminated), Georgia Tech def. Lipscomb 6-3

At Fullerton (Calif.) -- Virginia def. Rider 8-2 (Rider eliminated), UCLA def. Cal State Fullerton 11-4

At Stanford (Calif.) -- Stanford def. Arkansas 5-1 (Arkansas eliminated), Pepperdine def. UC Davis 7-4

At Stillwater (Okla.) -- TCU def. Western Kentucky 10-5 (W. Kentucky eliminated), Wichita State def. Oklahoma State 5-3

At Tallahassee (Fla.) -- Florida State def. Florida 17-11 (Florida eliminated), Tulane def. Bucknell 4-1

Right Bracket

At Cary (N.C.) -- Elon def. Mt. St. Mary's 6-3 (Mt. St. Mary's eliminated), North Carolina def. UNC Wilmington 5-1

At Conway (S.C.) -- East Carolina def. Columbia 9-0 (Columbia eliminated), Coastal Carolina def. Alabama 13-10

At Lincoln (Neb.) -- Oral Roberts def. Eastern Illinois 8-7 (E. Illinois eliminated), UC Irvine def. Nebraska 3-2

At Baton Rouge (La.) -- New Orleans def. Texas Southern 18-5 (Texas Southern eliminated), LSU def. Southern Miss. 13-4

At Houston (Texas) -- Texas def. Sam Houston State 13-3 (Sam Houston State eliminated), Rice def. St. John's 11-2

At College Station (Texas) -- Illinois-Chicago def. Dallas Baptist 9-5 (Dallas Baptist eliminated), Texas A&M def. Houston 22-4

At Long Beach (Calif.) -- Long Beach State def. California 9-2 (California eliminated), Fresno State def. San Diego 6-0

At Tempe (Ariz.) -- Vanderbilt def. Stony Brook 9-4 (Stony Brook eliminated), Arizona State def. Oklahoma 15-3

Results from regional play

Regional play is underway at the NCAA Div. I baseball tournament. Here are Friday's results:

Left Bracket

At Coral Gables, Fla. -- Miami def. Bethune Cookman 7-4, Missouri def. Ole Miss 7-0

At Ann Arbor, Mich. -- Arizona def. Eastern Michigan 13-7, Michigan vs. Kentucky in rain delay with Michigan leading 5-1 in 5th.

At Raleigh, N.C. -- North Carolina State def. James Madison 6-2, South Carolina def. Charlotte 15-8

At Athens, Ga. -- Lipscomb def. Georgia 10-7, Georgia Tech def. Louisville 8-5

At Fullerton, Calif. -- Cal State Fullerton def. Rider 11-0, UCLA def. Virginia 3-2

At Stanford, Calif. -- UC Davis def. Stanford 4-2, Pepperdine def. Arkansas 4-3

At Stillwater, Okla. -- Oklahoma State def. Western Kentucky 5-3, Wichita State def. TCU 8-5

At Tallahassee, Fla. -- Bucknell def. Florida State 7-0, Tulane def. Florida 7-4

Right Bracket

At Cary, N.C. -- North Carolina def. Mount St. Mary's 16-8, UNC Wilmington def. Elon 5-2

At Conway, S.C. -- Coastal Carolina def. Columbia 10-2, Alabama def. East Carolina 16-3

At Lincoln, Neb. -- Nebraska def. Eastern Illinois 13-10, UC Irvine def. Oral Roberts 9-7

At Baton Rouge, La. -- LSU def. Texas Southern 12-1, Southern Miss def. New Orleans 13-6

At Houston Texas -- Rice def. Sam Houston State 3-2, St. John's def. Texas 2-1

At College Station, Texas -- Texas A&M def. Illinois-Chicago 15-1 Houston def. Dallas Baptist 9-5

At Long Beach, Calif. -- Fresno State def. Long Beach State 7-3, San Diego def. California 5-0

At Tempe, Ariz. -- Arizona State def. Stony Brook 9-7, Oklahoma def. Vanderbilt 8-5

Regionals: Observations on the 64-team field

A few observations regarding the 64-team bracket for the NCAA Div. I baseball tournament:

Bumpiest road to Omaha -- You'd think getting the No. 1 seed in the tournament would mean something, but not in the case of the Miami Hurricanes. We're not sure if they have enemies on the selection board, but they sure didn't get an easy regional to host.

The Hurricanes must wade through Ole Miss and Missouri -- both of whom are talented teams with very solid pitching staffs -- just to get out of regionals. If they survive that, they face the winner of a regional that includes a solid Michigan team, a salty Kentucky squad and a surging Arizona team.

The eight teams that reach the College World Series are all deserving, but the winner of this part of the bracket may be the most deserving of them all.

Team nobody wants to face -- The hottest team in the field right now, without a doubt, is the LSU Tigers.

Winners of 20 straight, the Tigers are back in the thick of the national race after a two-year hiatus and stormed through the Southeastern Conference tournament, far and away the toughest tournament this year.

The Tigers should have no problem getting out of their regional, and if they keep playing well you have to wonder just what kind of a fight the winner of the Nebraska regional can put up to keep the Tigers from making the trip to Omaha.

Most undeserving seed -- Would somebody explain to us how Georgia, who two-and-'cued the SEC tournament, got a No. 8 seed ahead of Oklahoma State, who was playing much better at the end of the year?

Of course, had Oklahoma State not stumbled against Kansas State in the Big 12 tournament, the whole point would be moot and the 'Pokes would be sitting pretty in the No. 8 slot.

There's also a case to be made for San Diego, who won a tough West Coast Conference and have arguably the best 1-2 pitching combination in the country. Georgia just simply doesn't impress us as a No. 8 seed.

Most undesrving regional host -- Texas A&M very easily could have been left out of the regional race, in spite of its high RPI, after losing its last six regular-season games and its first two in the Big 12 tournament.

Again, San Diego was probably more deserving of a regional host site and, quite frankly, is a better team than the Aggies. The Toreros stand a good chance of winning the Long Beach Regional -- the Aggies, on the other hand, should thank their lucky stars if they can survive their own part of the bracket.

It would not surprise us to see to either advance to super-regionals or take the early exit -- it depends on which Texas A&M team shows up this weekend.

Easiest road to Omaha -- We're going to jinx North Carolina with this honor. But don't sell the Tar Heels short -- it's not that their part of the bracket is easy so much as their talent level and experience is so far and above the other teams that stand between them and another trip to Omaha.

North Carolina should get through their regional without any problem, and the super regional is going to be either Coastal Carolina -- who upset the Heels early in the season -- or East Carolina. While both teams are solid, they're just not at the Heels' level.

Anyone can win -- The one regional to watch is the Long Beach regional, where we feel any of the four teams can come away with the trip to super regionals.

Long Beach is the favorite and has played very well at home this year, but faces a pretty salty Fresno State team in the first round. The other half includes two teams that have been in and out of the top 10 this year in California and San Diego.

The winner here will have to face Arizona State, who could very well be the team to beat if they make it to Omaha and play at the level they were competing at early in the year.

Don't be surprised if -- UC Davis comes out of the Stanford regional. Although they finished sixth in the Big West, the Aggies have held their own pretty well and could win what might be a deceptively-strong regional with Arkansas and Pepperdine on board.

We also think TCU and Houston have good shots at winning their regionals at Oklahoma State and Texas A&M, respectively. Coming out of those regionals would be nice feathers in the caps of the Mountain West and Conference USA conferences.

Then there's Louisville, who made it to Omaha last year and are the third seed behind the two Georgia schools at Georgia's regional. With their returning experience, seeing them advance wouldn't be that big of an upset.

Miami leads the 64-team tournament field

The 64-team field has been announced for the NCAA Div. I baseball tournament, and the University of Miami Hurricanes leads the field of teams looking for a trip to Omaha for the College World Series.

Miami won the ACC tournament title and is one of three ACC teams among the top eight national seeds. North Carolina is No. 2 and Florida State is No. 4 in the group of the top eight seeds.

Two SEC teams made it into the top eight. LSU, which has been on fire lately and has won 20 in a row, is the No. 7 seed while Georgia, the SEC regular-season champion, is in at No. 8 despite going 0-2 in their conference tournament.

The other teams among the top eight national seeds include No. 3 Arizona State, No. 5 Cal State Fullerton and No. 6 Rice.

Eight more teams secured No. 1 seeds for regional tournament action this weekend. All but Arizona will host their regional tournaments, with the Wildcats heading up to Michigan where No. 2 seed Michigan will serve as host. Other host schools include North Carolina State, Stanford, Oklahoma State, Coastal Carolina, Nebraska, Texas A&M and Long Beach State.

The 64-team field shapes up as follows:

Left Bracket

At Coral Gables, Fla. -- 1. Miami (47-8) vs. 4. Bethune Cookman (36-20), 2. Missouri (38-19) vs. 3. Ole Miss (37-24)

At Ann Arbor, Mich. -- 1. Arizona (38-17) vs. 4. Eastern Michigan (25-32), 2. Michigan (45-12) vs. 3. Kentucky (42-17)

At Raleigh, N.C. -- 1. North Carolina State (38-20) vs. 4. James Madison (38-17), 2. South Carolina (38-21) vs. 3. Charlotte (43-14)

At Athens, Ga. -- 1. Georgia (35-21-1) vs. 4. Lipscomb (32-28), 2. Georgia Tech (39-19) vs. 3. Louisville (41-19)

At Fullerton, Calif. -- 1. Cal State Fullerton (37-19) vs. 4. Rider (29-26), 2. UCLA (31-25) vs. 3. Virginia (38-21)

At Stanford, Calif. -- 1. Stanford (33-21-2) vs. 4. UC Davis (34-22), 2. Pepperdine (36-19) vs. 3. Arkansas (34-22)

At Stillwater, Okla. -- 1. Oklahoma State (42-16) vs. 4. Western Kentucky (33-25), 2. Wichita State (44-15) vs. 3. TCU (43-17)

At Tallahassee, Fla. -- 1. Florida State (48-10) vs. 4. Bucknell (29-22-2), 2. Florida (34-22) vs. Tulane (37-20-1)

Right Bracket

At Cary, N.C. -- 1. North Carolina (46-12) vs. 4. Mount St. Mary's (21-32), 2. UNC Wilmington (42-15-1) vs. 3. Elon (43-16)

At Conway, S.C. -- 1. Coastal Carolina (47-12) vs. 4. Columbia (22-28), 2. East Carolina (40-19) vs. 3. Alabama (34-26)

At Lincoln, Neb. -- 1. Nebraska (40-14-1) vs. 4. Eastern Illinois (27-28), 2. UC Irvine (38-16) vs. 3. Oral Roberts (46-12)

At Baton Rouge, La. -- 1. LSU (43-16-1) vs. 4. Texas Southern (16-32), 2. Southern Miss (40-20) vs. 3. New Orleans (42-19)

At Houston Texas -- 1. Rice (42-13) vs. 4. Sam Houston State (37-23), 2. Texas (37-20) vs. 3. St. John's (41-14)

At College Station, Texas -- 1. Texas A&M (43-16) vs. Illinois-Chicago (34-20), 2. Dallas Baptist (37-17) vs. 3. Houston (39-22)

At Long Beach, Calif. -- 1. Long Beach State (37-19) vs. 4. Fresno State (37-27), 2. San Diego (41-15) vs. 3. California (33-19-2)

At Tempe, Ariz. -- 1. Arizona State (45-11) vs. 4. Stony Brook (34-24), 2. Vanderbilt (40-20) vs. 3. Oklahoma (34-24-1)

Regional winners advance to the best-of-three super regional series, with super regional winners advancing to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., beginning June 14.