Final Field Of 64 Projection
Posted May. 24, 2009 7:24 pm by Aaron Fitt
Filed under: Around The Nation, Conference Tournaments, Division I Postseason
On the eve of the NCAA tournament selection (which will be broadcast at 12:30 p.m. ET on Monday on ESPN), let’s take one final crack at predicting the field of 64. National seeds are in parentheses, with regional hosts denoted by ^ and automatic qualifiers denoted by *. The eight regionals at the top of this list are on the left side of the bracket, and the eight regionals at the bottom are on the right side of the bracket.
| Austin, Texas |
Fort Worth, Texas
|
| 1. (1) Texas^* |
1. Texas Christian^ |
| 2. Texas State* |
2. Texas A&M |
| 3. Missouri State |
3. Oregon State |
| 4. Marist* |
4. Kent State* |
| |
|
| Houston |
Norman, Okla. |
| 1. (8) Rice^* |
1. Oklahoma^ |
| 2. Kansas State |
2. Arkansas |
| 3. Sam Houston State* |
3. Oral Roberts* |
| 4. Wright State* |
4. Wichita State* |
| |
|
Irvine, Calif.
|
Clemson, S.C.
|
| 1. (4) UC Irvine^* |
1. Clemson^ |
| 2. Minnesota |
2. Coastal Carolina* |
| 3. San Diego State |
3. Kansas |
| 4. Binghamton* |
4. Rhode Island |
| |
|
| Chapel Hill, N.C. |
Louisville, KY. |
| 1. (5) North Carolina^ |
1. Louisville^* |
| 2. Elon |
2. Vanderbilt |
| 3. Xavier* |
3. Western Kentucky* |
| 4. Monmouth* |
4. Indiana* |
| |
|
| Baton Rouge, La. |
Greenville, N.C. |
| 1. (2) Louisiana State^* |
1. Virginia* |
| 2. Missouri |
2. East Carolina^ |
| 3. Tulane |
3. George Mason |
| 4. Southern* |
4. Army* |
| |
|
| Tallahassee, Fla. |
Gainesville, Fla. |
| 1. (7) Florida State^ |
1. Florida^ |
| 2. Alabama |
2. Miami |
| 3. Gonzaga* |
3. Jacksonville* |
| 4. Dartmouth* |
4. Bethune-Cookman* |
| |
|
| Tempe, Ariz. |
Atlanta |
| 1. (3) Arizona State^* |
1. Georgia Tech^ |
| 2. Ohio State |
2. South Carolina |
| 3. Cal Poly |
3. Georgia Southern* |
| 4. Utah* |
4. Georgia State* |
| |
|
| Fullerton, Calif. |
Oxford, Miss. |
| 1. (6) Cal State Fullerton^ |
1. Mississippi^ |
| 2. Georgia |
2. Middle Tennessee State* |
| 3. Washington State |
3. Boston College |
| 4. Fresno State* |
4. Tennessee Tech* |
ANALYSIS
- UPDATE: Defending national champion Fresno State has pulled off another remarkable comeback to win the WAC tournament. The Bulldogs needed to win back-to-back games against unbeaten New Mexico State to get back to regionals, and they trailed 7-4 through seven innings in the first game before rallying for five runs over the final two innings. Then, in the decisive nightcap, Jordan Ribera broke a 3-3 tie with a two-run homer in the eighth inning to propel Fresno into the NCAA tournament. We’ll send the Bulldogs to Fullerton, and Utah to Tempe.
- Virginia made a strong push to earn a No. 1 seed by winning the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament, so we’re making the Cavaliers the top seed in the Greenville Regional, as East Carolina is the weakest host. UVa. ranks sixth in the RPI and is 10-8-1 against top-50 RPI teams, while East Carolina is 22nd in the RPI and just 5-6 against the top 50. The complication with that scenario is it would prevent the Greenville and Chapel Hill regionals from being paired, so there’s at least a chance that Virginia could head to Louisville as the top seed, but I think the Cardinals have built a strong case to be a No. 1 seed by winning the Big East regular-season and tournament titles. If Virginia winds up as a No. 2, it could wind up in Louisville, with South Carolina heading to Greenville and Georgia going to Atlanta.
- There are no teams out West worthy of No. 2 seeds, so three teams from other regions will have to make the long journey. I’m sending two Big Ten teams and Georgia across country. Georgia would be a logical fit in Atlanta, but South Carolina is also within driving distance of Atlanta, and the Gamecocks are more deserving of staying local and playing in a regional with a team that is not a national seed.
- I’m flip-flopping from my prediction earlier today that Eastern Illinois would get one of the final at-large bids. I’d love to see the Panthers get into a regional, but three factors will keep them out: RPI (they rank 69th, according to warrennolan.com), record against top-50 RPI teams (1-2) and an 0-2 performance in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament. In EIU’s place is Tulane, which gets the third CUSA bid over Southern Miss on the strength of six straight series wins down the stretch and more quality series wins. The Green Wave won series against East Carolina and at Southern Miss, while the Golden Eagles did not win a series all year against a regional contender. USM’s 12-place edge in RPI and stronger performance in the CUSA tourament (where Tulane also held its own, winning two games) should not outweigh Tulane’s superior body of work.
- The other team that just misses the cut is Notre Dame. Oregon State just squeaks into the field by salvaging a series win against Stanford today.
- It’s a toss-up between Texas and LSU for the No. 1 overall seed. Both teams won regular-season and tournament titles in power conferences, but Texas gets the ever-so-slight nod because of a slightly higher RPI. The other debate in the top eight is who gets the last national seed. It’s tough to overlook Florida’s 24-18 record against top-50 RPI teams, but Rice gets the edge based on a stronger performance in its conference tournament.
- The lone at-large team to earn a No. 4 seed is Rhode Island, so technically the Rams are the last team into the field. They do look like the most vulnerable of the at-large choices in this field, although I could very easily see the committee taking Southern Miss over Tulane based on RPI and the conference tournament. But that would be the wrong choice.
Aaron, I sure hope you are correct. It’s been a long time coming for San Diego State.
Posted by David | May 24, 2009 at 7:31 pm | ShortcutColumbia?? I must be missing something because this bracket has two Ivy League qualifiers.
Posted by Craig | May 24, 2009 at 7:59 pm | ShortcutSorry for that error — I was using last year’s projections as a template and missed subbing Wright State in for Columbia. It has now been corrected.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 8:14 pm | ShortcutWhat are Baylor’s chance of making the field?
Posted by T | May 24, 2009 at 8:31 pm | ShortcutAaron. Clark-Leclair Stadium in Greenville is one of the best atmosphere’s in the nation to watch college baseball. ECU deserved a host site because of their great year and incredible fan support.
Posted by Josh | May 24, 2009 at 9:16 pm | ShortcutAaron, thinking Tulane deserves the bid over USM even though USM’s RPI is 12 spots higher, and USM beat Tulane TWICE in two days in the CUSA tournament is just plain crazy. I’ve questioned your decisions many times in the past, but this one makes no sense what-so-ever. Even your explanation is just wrong and off base. Southern Miss is the hotter team, better RPI, and won 2 games against the Wave this past weekend, USM deserves that spot over Tulane.
Posted by Cory | May 24, 2009 at 9:29 pm | ShortcutHow in the **** does Elon get the 2 seed over Georgia Southern?
Posted by Zach | May 24, 2009 at 9:32 pm | ShortcutIt will be a great regional, for sure — that is a wonderful venue, and the fan base there is incredibly passionate. Of course, the same can be said for South Carolina…
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 9:35 pm | ShortcutAaron, if you think Tulane is a better team than Southern Miss, why don’t you call Rick Jones and ask him why USM beat them twice in the CUSA tournament and why USM has the better record and RPI?
Posted by Larry | May 24, 2009 at 9:39 pm | ShortcutLike I said earlier, you are free to disagree (and I have a hunch USM is probably going to get in over Tulane anyway), but to me it comes back to Tulane winning its last six series, and USM losing its last four conference series. Is Southern Miss really that much hotter based on one week? Don’t forget, Tulane won two of three at USM earlier this year, so the Green Wave is now 2-3 against the Golden Eagles, with all five games played in Hattiesburg. And Tulane also won a series against ECU, while Southern Miss did not win a series against any of the other top three teams in the conference (Rice, Tulane and ECU). You can discount my opinion all you like, but to say it’s just plain crazy seems a little unfair. I certainly wouldn’t suggest that it’s crazy to take Southern Miss over Tulane — there’s not a huge difference between the two. I just happen to like Tulane’s resume better, and I think I backed it up with pretty sound logic, whether you agree or not.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 9:39 pm | ShortcutAaron, No fourth team from the Pac-10? What about Arizona and their strong finish?
Posted by Scott | May 24, 2009 at 9:40 pm | ShortcutHow about Elon winning the SoCon regular-season crown by 3.5 games and taking two out of three at Georgia Southern earlier in the year? You’re going to throw all of that out based on one game today?
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 9:41 pm | ShortcutSo Aaron, are you saying that C-USA will “probably” get four bids? Or are you saying that USM will “probably” get in over Tulane despite your own prognostication picking the Wave?
Posted by Stewie | May 24, 2009 at 9:44 pm | ShortcutGSU has 2 wins over host GT (1 game was a 23-3 slaughter), beat host East Carolina, beat #2 seed Elon in the Southern Conference Championship after sweeping through the tournament. They beat the Big 10 champs Indiana.
Posted by Zach | May 24, 2009 at 9:50 pm | ShortcutTulane 10-10 vs. other NCAA likely entrants and USM combined this year; victories over two national seeds — LSU and Irvine
USM: 8-11 vs. NCCA field plus Tulane this year; one win for usm over rice, a national seed
Posted by Randy McClain | May 24, 2009 at 9:51 pm | ShortcutHow about Elon losing 2 out of their last 3 in the SoCon tournament and got shelled by GSU when it mattered the most?
Posted by Zach | May 24, 2009 at 9:52 pm | ShortcutJust saying I think CUSA gets three bids, but it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if Southern Miss gets in over Tulane. This field is a combination of a prediction and what I think the committee should do.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 9:53 pm | ShortcutHey Randy.
USM: RPI- 55,
Tulane: RPI – 67
USM 3-2 against Tulane
Spin it all you want. USM was/is the better team and deserves it over the Wave.
Posted by Cory | May 24, 2009 at 9:57 pm | Shortcutcorrection: Tulane 10-10 vs. NCAA field and USM
USM, 9-12 vs. same
Posted by Randy McClain | May 24, 2009 at 9:59 pm | ShortcutHow in the world does Kent State get stuck in Texas? You have just cost the kids of that team a big following. Why were they not put in a “REGION” that is a true region?
Posted by Paula | May 24, 2009 at 10:04 pm | ShortcutI know us smaller “non-sunbelt” teams are lucky to get in, but how could there not be any more east or midwest host sites?
Colubmus, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
West Virginia
Kentucky
Heck even Tennessee…
If the Diamond ‘Dogs can win the berth, you don’t think they’ll go to the closer Regional in Fullerton or Irvine?
Posted by FSDogs1 | May 24, 2009 at 10:06 pm | ShortcutNone of those teams are in the tournament. Can’t exactly play a regional when there’s no host. Indiana is more deserving of staying local by heading to Louisville than Kent State is.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 10:08 pm | Shortcutusing rpi as the determining measurement Auburn would be going over both tulane and usm; I’d like to see both of these CUSA teams get in…they are mirror images of each other this year
Posted by Randy McClain | May 24, 2009 at 10:09 pm | ShortcutA good point — that is very likely.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 10:09 pm | ShortcutYou evidently do not get the Big Ten Channel on TV
We have watched for months, and you can not tell me that these teams are that much better than Kent or the MAC
They each have one or two very good players, but nothing that would elevate Indiana over any of the ones listed below…….Kent beat OSU for goodness sake…….and we started a freshman pitcher!
Ohio State is in, Xavier is in,
Indiana is in, Kent is in……………..
how is the midwest not a region?
Posted by Paula | May 24, 2009 at 10:17 pm | ShortcutSoutheastern Louisiana has a better RPI than Tulane and beat Tulane head-to-head, 2 out of 3. Not saying the Lions should definitely be in, but should get in over the Green Wave.
Posted by Bob Boudreaux | May 24, 2009 at 10:17 pm | ShortcutToo bad teams like Middle Tennessee will never host a regional. They looked pretty good and their bullpen was lights out, not to mention having one of the best hitters (numbers-wise) in the country, brand new stadium, etc. This was probably the closest the Sunbelt will come in a long time to having a host-worthy team.
I’m glad you picked Texas as the #1 overall as opposed to LSU. Vandy was definitely the better team in the SEC tourney, even though they lost the final (after beating LSU earlier in the tournament). LSU kept trying to let them back in the game when they should’ve been sealing the deal.
Posted by Marc | May 24, 2009 at 10:25 pm | ShortcutGreat stuff, Aaron. Thoughtful. Thorough. Now, let’s get real. The committee is not going to send all those Big Tens and Georgias out west and ship several Calif. schools elsewhere. Expediency is the name of the game when those guys seed and bracket, thus the 4-seeding for eventual CWS champ Fresno State last year. ‘Dogs were a great story and staged a miracle run. But they were a third seed that the committee made a 4 to avoid shipping them (or another Calif. school) to the midwest.
Posted by ed | May 24, 2009 at 10:38 pm | ShortcutWhy wouldn’t they just have UVA host? Hard to believe that ECU wouldn’t be a 1 seed. Sounds like wishful thinking on BA’s part.
Posted by Jbyrrd | May 24, 2009 at 10:42 pm | ShortcutAaron,
Good job and you’re probably right, but I’m tired of seeing 8 teams from the SEC and 7 from the ACC, etc… If you’re not in the top half of a 12 team Conference, what’s the point? But, i know that the Committee is BCS blind, so…
….Also, the Southern Conference had a much better year than the rest of the nation realize, with 5 teams that started the week with a shot at a tourney bid: Elon was ranked #22 in the Nation this week, they have about a 20 RPI, Ga. Southern has a 32 RPI, split 2-2 with Ga. Tech, beat Indiana, East Carolina, and lost to South Carolina 2-1 in extra innings; College of Charleston had about a 42 RPI, but blew its last weekend and the tourney, Western Carolina had about a 45 RPI, but needed to go deeper into the tourney play, and the Citadel had I think the best case for a third team in from the Conference as they beat South Carolina twice, won 2 out of 3 in series against the top teams in the Conf., Elon, Ga. Southern and Western Carolina, and they went deep into the tourney, but they had a bad RPI (about 81). So, I think all of the bubble busting this weekend will play no role with Elon or Ga. Southern (which won the automatic bid today in a win over Elon), but Western Carolina will be the most hurt by it as I think now getting 4 teams is out of the question, and getting 3 in is very iffy. I believe that the Southern Conference was better this year than Conf. USA and the West Coast Conf, but if the host sites are any indication, it doesn’t appear that the Committee had paid much attention to the Southern Conference, again. Instead, we will get to see the 6th and 7th and perhaps even the 8th best team from a 12 team conference. Whoopie!
Posted by Bob | May 24, 2009 at 10:44 pm | ShortcutWhich California schools are being shipped elsewhere? Only San Diego State and maybe Fresno are going to make it from California, outside Fullerton and Irvine, of course. There are no legitimate No. 2 seeds out West, which is why three teams from the Midwest and East have to be shipped out West as No. 2s. There are five Western teams that will be No. 3 seeds (Poly, San Diego State, Washington State, Gonzaga, Oregon State), and there are only three Western regionals, so that means two of them have to head east.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 10:45 pm | ShortcutSorry to be so sensitive, but I have watched baseball for years and it just irks me to see the northern teams not even given a chance. These regions need to be just that…………each region of the US should be represented. I don’t care if the SEC, BIG 12, PAC 10….etc are better conferences……….each region should have its own playoff………………….too bad for all the sunny schools, let them fight it out and get a true Nationally represented winner.
Sounds drastic? Maybe? Maybe not?
That is how us hillbillies in Ohio do the High School State tourneys……….all regions- (no matter how many schools or teams in each area) are split into 4 sections and the best of each region is represented…..and play in the Final 4.
Posted by Paula | May 24, 2009 at 10:55 pm | ShortcutAaron
Posted by Jake | May 24, 2009 at 11:25 pm | ShortcutI’m an LSU fan in New Orleans so im seeing alot of Tulane baseball coverage in the paper. From the way they’re writing, it looks like Tulane didn’t do enough in their eyes to make the tourney. So if USM were to get in would you sub them for Tulane in the Baton Rouge regional or send them in-state to Oxford regional?
Jake, I expect Southern Miss would be in Oxford if it gets in.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 24, 2009 at 11:53 pm | ShortcutWash. St at a 3 seed. Have posted 31 wins and played 8 of the teams in the field of 64. Will be 9 if ND sneaks in. What’s WSU’s SOS, like no. 2 overall.
Posted by RJ | May 25, 2009 at 12:21 am | ShortcutHonestly, if you finish 2nd in your conference behind the no. 3 team overall and have the 2nd toughest schedule, you deserve a 2 seed.
I guess we will have to see tomorrow.
How does a 34-25 Tulane team get in the tournament over a 36-23 Notre Dame team? That doesn’t make sense.
Posted by David | May 25, 2009 at 12:29 am | ShortcutDavid, Notre Dame’s problem is it finished fifth in its league, and while the Big East is probably an underrated league, it’s hardly a power conference. I do like Notre Dame’s quality series wins against the top two teams in the conference (Louisville and South Florida), which is why I’ve got Notre Dame as one of my last teams out. But in the end, the Big East standings were the deciding factor for me.
Posted by Aaron Fitt | May 25, 2009 at 12:36 am | ShortcutWhat are Baylor’s chances of getting in? They have a great RPI.
Posted by T | May 25, 2009 at 12:39 am | ShortcutI can’t believe someone suggested that LSU shouldn’t be the #1 overall seed because of their tournament performance.
LSU went 5-1 in 5 days against teams that are all future 1 or 2 seeds in regionals. All the while LSU had nothing important to play for, and every other team they faced had something on the line.
If anything that performance should make the case for LSU over Texas, not the other way around.
Posted by Kevin | May 25, 2009 at 1:08 am | ShortcutDo you think Virginia has a chance to host?
Posted by Mark Evans | May 25, 2009 at 3:19 am | ShortcutOregon State with 35 wins as a number 3 and squeaks in. Not sure where that analysis comes from since the PAC-10 got stronger halfway through the season. I agree that WSU should be a number 2 they are a very solid club. Look for the PAC-10 to represent themselves very well in the tourney this year.
Posted by r hogan | May 25, 2009 at 3:22 am | ShortcutYou have 5 teams picked that i strongly disagree with. I have Tulane 94 in my power ratings, they LOST to 9 different teams with an RPI of 101 or greater. Rhode Island is 84 in my ratings, they also LOST to 9 teams with an RPI over 100 and 2 of those was over 200. George Mason is 65 in my power ratings, they LOST to 6 teams with an 3 digit RPI and their best win is NC Wilmington! Missouri State is 69 in my ratings, they only LOST to 8 teams with an RPI over 100. All four of these teams would finish last in the SEC and not win a series in that conference. Ohio State is arguable to get in, I have them rated at 56, but there are better teams that you left out. Baylor is rated 23 and Oklahoma State at 26 is my ratings and would easily win a series over those 4 teams. Baylor has wins over 7 teams in the field. Oklahoma State beat 5 teams in the field including Texas, Fullerton & Oregon State. I would include UC Riverside rated at 40 and if push comes to shove they should get in before Cal Poly because they just beat team in a series at Cal Poly. I have Auburn and Kentucky also in from the SEC. The committee may not take 10 from the SEC, but if the objective is the best 34 at large, then it’s a no brainer. I have Auburn rated 27. The beat 10 teams that are in the field. That’s 8 more than George Mason & Rhode Island PLAYED. Kentucky beat 8 teams in the field including wins AT Louisvile, AT LSU and AT Florida. All in all it’s going to be a great tournament. You guys do a great job! Keep up the good work.
Posted by Chris Wilson | May 25, 2009 at 6:28 am | ShortcutOMAHA
Ole Miss At Home Again! Hahaha I can’t wait. Bianco will find a way to blow it.
Posted by Chris | May 25, 2009 at 6:33 am | ShortcutNotre Dame finished fifth in the big east, but is is an unbalanced schedule. they are the only team in the league that played all seven teams that made the tournament. they are the only team to take two of three from louisville, usf, wvu and st john’s. they have the highest sos and second highest rpi of any team in league. would have been nice to see nd benefit from playing georgetown and rutgers (combined record of about 10-40 in the league) like louisville.
louisville gets a regional host and nd beat three times this year, twice on their home field. basially, nd knocked out louisville out of its own regional last month if you will. florida is the only other team to beat ‘ville three times.
they also have more top 50 and top 100 wins than rhode island, southern miss, tulane and san diego state. they also have a tougher sos than all those teams.
Posted by michael | May 25, 2009 at 6:41 am | ShortcutI would be disappointed if UVA is a 1 seed in Greenville. They finished very strong in the ACC tourney, but I hope the NCAA makes a point with this.
You cannot earn a host site if you have a terrible out of conference schedule. UVA played 25 out of conference games and not a single one of those was against a RPI 100 team. Not a single one. Your resume cannot be built of in conference play alone, even if you play in one of the top 2 conferences. JMHO.
Posted by Brian | May 25, 2009 at 7:22 am | ShortcutSorry Aaron, hit enter too soon.
I see ECU and UNC regionals being paired up together. In that case UVA cannot be #1 seed in the ECU region. I dont know, I just dont see it likely that UVA would travel as a 1 seed when they are already capable hosts.
Posted by Brian | May 25, 2009 at 8:08 am | ShortcutHopefully Texas will get a chance to put LSU away in the post-season. It’ll just be yet another post-season victory over an SEC team. Heck, the Longhorns clinched their ‘75, ‘83, ‘02, and ‘05 national titles against SEC teams. At least the ‘49 and ‘50 national championships came against Wake Forest and Washington State. Hook ‘em Horns!
Posted by Jim Fletcher | May 25, 2009 at 8:50 am | ShortcutJim Fletcher, UT-Austin alumnus
Brian,
I completely agree with you. I believe ECU will host with a #1 seeding. There is no reason for UVA to travel to Greenville if they are a top seed. UVA has plenty of facility to host a regional. I am really looking forward to ECU hosting because the atmosphere in Greenville is one of a kind for college baseball..
Posted by DJ | May 25, 2009 at 9:15 am | ShortcutAaron, With so many OTHER teams (of various seeds & quality) within driving distance of Atlanta, why would the committee assign teams that Georgia Tech has played MULTIPLE times this year ALREADY??? Georgia Southern and Georgia State, for starters … why when so many others are nearby?
And if Georgia winds up in Atlanta instead of USC, then. …. we’re just re-playing the regular season.
I would understand if there Middle Tenn, Vandy, Jacksonville, Elon, etc. etc. etc. within driving distance.
-George
Posted by George | May 25, 2009 at 9:42 am | ShortcutPaula – You evidently did not watch the Big Ten Network during the Big Ten tournament! You cannot say that Indiana has one or two players when they batted .414 for the tournament and outscored opponents 47-9 in 4 games. O yea, and in the last 2 games, against 2 teams in the field of 64 (Minnesota and Ohio State), we also started 2 freshman pitchers and still won big! Indiana is the most dangerous #4 seed in the tournament and should get to stay close to home.
Posted by John | May 25, 2009 at 9:58 am | ShortcutSO GREAT TO SEE MISSOURI STATE UP THERE. INJURIES PLAYED HUGE IN EARLY SEASON LOSSES 30-10 LAST FORTY 11 GAME WINNER IN BAUMANN VICTORIES OVER OREGON STATE AND MISSOURI ON THE ROAD HUGE. MO VALLEY REGULAR SEASON CHAMPS.SHOULD BALANCE THE CARD IN BEARS FAVOR
Posted by FRANK | May 25, 2009 at 10:16 am | ShortcutTulane has 10 wins vs. top 100 (10-14)
ND has 11 (11-10)
ND has two more losses though vs. teams from 100 to 300 than Tulane does
Posted by Randy McClain | May 25, 2009 at 10:22 am | ShortcutOregon State just getting in? That is crazy!!! They have won two National Titles in the last three years and have the same mold and the type of teams from those two years. I will take coach Casey any day in a big game and all I am saying is watch out for those BEAVERS!!!!
Posted by J.D. | May 25, 2009 at 10:36 am | Shortcutaaron,
Posted by allan | May 25, 2009 at 11:20 am | Shortcutany outside shot WCU gets one of the last bids? with the last spots being so weak could it go to any of those?
USM handed Tulane it’s worst tourney loss in 28 years 15-2. USM is the better team right now that’s why they are in.
Posted by Eaves | May 25, 2009 at 12:08 pm | Shortcut[...] regular season finale to Oregon State, 5-2, which further weakens the Cardinal’s case for an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament and probably means no scenes like the one in the photo this June. The field [...]
Posted by Bay Area Sports Blog » Is it football season yet? | May 25, 2009 at 12:38 pm | ShortcutBig Tulane fan. Tulane had an good year. I am not surprised, but obviously dissapointed they didn’t get in this year. I think they deserved it over USM, but, its hard to say that it was a BAD decision, just one that had to be made in one way or the other. Truth is that Tulane was 1 win away from definitely making it – (if they beat Houston one more time to take that series, or if they held on to their lead against Irvine, or if they beat Southern Miss just once in the CUSA tourney) While there is a good argument to say that they COULD have been picked anyways, if they had won just one of those key games it wouldn’t have been a question, so, its really on them. Roll Wave.
Posted by Dan | May 26, 2009 at 12:18 pm | ShortcutAaron,
Are the Fullerton and Norman regionals correct? I thought Washington State was in Norman.
Posted by Michael | May 27, 2009 at 3:24 pm | ShortcutJohn, you made my point. None of the teams listed in my paragraph were elevated over each other………..and Kent is just like your team……young pitching.
Why wasn’t any of our “region” teams host and why did all of our “region” teams have to go OUT of the region?
Posted by Paula | June 1, 2009 at 4:10 pm | Shortcut