NCAA Regional Preview: Gainesville

By Will Kimmey
June 2, 2005

Televised by CSTV

1. Florida 40-20, at-large, won Southeastern Conference regular season, No. 7 national seed, 23rd NCAA tournament, sixth consecutive appearance
2. North Carolina 40-17, at-large, fifth in Atlantic Coast, 20th NCAA tournament, fourth consecutive appearance
3. Notre Dame 36-22, automatic, won Big East tournament, 20th NCAA tournament, seventh consecutive appearance
4. Stetson 35-26, automatic, won Atlantic Sun tournament, 13th NCAA tournament

Player To Watch: Andrew Miller grew up just miles from the Florida campus, but chose North Carolina because he wanted a change of scenery. How the sophomore lefty with a low-90s fastball and power slider pitches in his homecoming game could determine his team’s ultimate fate. He’s struggled with command and confidence at times, but he’s still 8-3, 2.74 with 96 strikeouts in 89 innings.

The Favorite: A sophomore-laden, quick-strike offense that blasted 70 home runs and 97 doubles makes Florida a dangerous team against which to pitch. Sophomore first baseman Matt LaPorta cranked 23 long balls and slugged .730 (sixth in the nation) to earn SEC player of the year honors, while senior center fielder Jeff Corsaletti’s .379 batting average ranked third in the league. Florida’s relief ace Connor Falkenbach (3-3, 2.92, eight saves) appeared in 25 of the 30 SEC games and 45 contests overall. A strike-throwing rotation that goes four men deep in quality arms tries to get a lead to Falkenbach and fellow sidearming reliever Darren O’Day (7-3, 3.22, six saves).

On The Other Hand: Sophomores also lead North Carolina’s club, and the main names come on the mound. Miller and righthander Daniel Bard have power repertoires, but classmate Robert Woodard’s competitive nature and command leave him as the staff ace at 7-0, 2.22. There’s plenty more pitching depth on a team with a 3.16 ERA, which ranks 14th nationally. Freshman corner infielder Chad Flack (team-best 14 home runs) and sophomore DH Matt Ellington (team-best 55 RBIs) lead the offense. Defense (.957 fielding percentage) and overall inconsistency have plagued the Tar Heels, but this talented team might be a year away, like the school’s 2004 hoops squad.

Bracket Buster: Crafty senior lefthander Tom Thornton (6-5, 4.50) heads a Notre Dame staff that ended up with less depth and experience than hoped when Jeff Manship and John Axford failed to make quick recoveries from Tommy John surgery. But sophomore righthanders Dan Kapla (6-3, 3.64) and Jeff Samardzija (8-1, 3.93) emerged as solid options. Senior first baseman Matt Edwards led the conference with 66 RBIs, ranked second with 14 homers and third with a .478 on-base percentage. Scrappy freshman Brett Lilley was league rookie of the year after leading the Big East with a .498 OBP and solidifying the defense by moving from second base to third.

Don't Forget About: In a region with lots of pitching depth, Stetson could test it with a .323 team average (seventh among tournament teams) and eight regulars batting .305 or better. First baseman Chris Johnson tops that list. The Atlantic Sun freshman of the year batted .381-8-52 and ranked second in the league in average and doubles (23). The Hatters struggle on the mound, though, as not a pitcher on the roster averaged a strikeout per inning pitched, leading to a 5.24 ERA.