The College World Series field is set, and it will contain a few very familiar faces clad in orange and black. Oregon State cruised to an 8-2 victory over Michigan on Monday to earn its third consecutive CWS appearance. The Beavers are the only team to have reached Omaha each of the last three years.

OSU got big performances from a couple of its mainstays in Monday’s super-regional clincher. Junior shortstop Darwin Barney led the offense, going 3-for-5 with a double and three RBIs. And 2006 CWS hero Mike Stutes allowed just two runs on three hits over eight innings while striking out nine and walking one. Experience is invaluable in the postseason, and Oregon State stalwarts like Barney, Mitch Canham, Eddie Kunz and Mike Lissman are making their third consecutive trip to Omaha. Wow.

So if you’re keeping score at home, the Pac-10 will have as many representatives in Omaha (Arizona State and Oregon State) as the ACC (North Carolina), SEC (Mississippi State) and Big 12 (none) combined. And the Big West (UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton) will have as many Omaha teams as the ACC, SEC and Big 12 combined. Let’s give West Coast baseball its due.

Now that the field is set, we also know what the schedule is for Friday and Saturday. The 2007 College World Series will kick off at 1 p.m. CT on Friday with No. 2 national seed Rice taking on Louisville. The second Friday game, featuring No. 3 national seed North Carolina and Mississippi State, is scheduled for 6 p.m.

On Saturday, fifth-seeded Arizona State will take on UC Irvine at 1 p.m., and Cal State Fullerton will face Oregon State at 6.