2014 College Baseball

[mabrowndog]

Hard to believe we're less than 2 weeks away from the announcement of the 64-team NCAA D-I tournament field. The schedule:
 
* May 26 - Selection Show, 12 pm, ESPNU
* May 29 - Regionals (through June 1)
* June 6 - Super Regionals (through June 9)
* June 14 - College World Series (through June 24/25) - Omaha NE
 
One auto-bid has already been locked up, with Columbia winning the Ivy. Conference tournament play also began last week in the Patriot, and they'll crown their champion this weekend. Tournament play got underway yesterday in the SWAC, and the MEAC gets started today.
 
Some useful links:
 
NCAA.com Div. I page
NCAA.com Conference Championship Central
Baseball America
College Baseball 360
College Baseball Daily
Collegiate Baseball News
Conference Standings
CWS Omaha.com
D1Baseball.com
D2Baseball News
D3Baseball.com
Dolphin Ratings
Live D-I Scoreboard
National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association
RPI rankings
Warren Nolan.com
Wikipedia - 2014 NCAA D-I Baseball
 
 
The latest polls, along with the Ratings Percentage Index:
 
[tablegrid=]  USA Today Coaches  Baseball America  College Baseball News NCBWA RPI 1 Virginia (17) Virginia Oregon St Oregon St Virginia 2 Oregon St (12) Oregon St Virginia Virginia Florida St 3 LA-Lafayette LA-Lafayette LA-Lafayette LA-Lafayette Florida 4 Florida St Florida St Miami FL Florida St Oregon St 5 Cal Poly Washington Washington Louisville Indiana 6 Oklahoma St Cal Poly Florida St Cal Poly Rice 7 Louisville Miami FL Oklahoma St Oklahoma St Vanderbilt 8 S. Carolina Florida Indiana LSU Houston 9 Vanderbilt Indiana TCU S. Carolina LA-Lafayette 10 LSU Louisville Florida Vanderbilt Miami FL 11 Washington Mississippi Louisville Washington Texas 12 Miami FL Oklahoma St Cal Poly Houston S. Carolina 13 Florida TCU Mississippi Miami FL TCU 14 Mississippi Rice Vanderbilt Florida Texas Tech 15 Rice LSU LSU Oregon Ole Miss 16 Houston Houston Mississippi St Mississippi Cal Poly 17 Oregon S. Carolina S. Carolina Rice Indiana St 18 Indiana Vanderbilt Oregon Indiana Louisville 19 TCU Alabama Houston Texas Kentucky 20 Texas Mississippi St Rice TCU LSU 21 Mississippi St Liberty UC-Irvine Mississippi St Alabama 22 Alabama Kansas Alabama Alabama Liberty 23 Texas Tech Pepperdine Liberty Texas Tech Washington 24 Liberty UC-Irvine Pepperdine Liberty Oklahoma St 25 UC-Irvine Texas Sam Houston St Clemson Oregon 26 Clemson   Nebraska Sam Houston St UC-Irvine 27 Indiana St   Texas Tech UC-Irvine Mercer 28 Pepperdine   Texas Nebraska Old Dominion 29 Nebraska   Stony Brook Pepperdine West Virginia 30 Kentucky   Creighton UAB UNLV [/tablegrid]

 

[mabrowndog]

Here's the D-I conference tournament schedule. I'll try to keep it updated as winners are crowned:
 
[tablegrid=]CONFERENCE DATES LOCATION VENUE CHAMPION America East May 22-25 Lowell MA LeLacheur Park Binghamton American Athletic May 21-25 Clearwater FL Bright House Field Houston Atlantic 10 May 21-24 St. Louis MO Billikens Sports Center George Mason Atlantic Coast May 20-25 Greensboro NC Newbridge Bank Park Georgia Tech Atlantic Sun May 21-25 Fort Myers FL Swanson Stadium Kennesaw State Big 12 May 21-25 Oklahoma City OK Bricktown Ballpark Texas Christian Big East May 22-25 Brooklyn NY MCU Park Xavier Big South May 20-24 Rock Hill SC Winthrop Ballpark Campbell Big Ten May 21-25 Omaha NE TD Ameritrade Park Indiana Big West No Tournament     Cal Poly Colonial Athletic May 21-24 Wilmington NC Brooks Field College of Charleston Conference USA May 21-25 Hattiesburg MS Pete Taylor Park Rice Horizon League May 21-24 Milwaukee WI Kapco Park Youngstown State Ivy League May 10-11 New York NY Satow Stadium Columbia Metro Atlantic May 21-25 Lakewood NJ FirstEnergy Park Siena Mid-American May 21-25 Avon OH All Pro Freight Stadium Kent State Mid-Eastern Athletic May 15-18 Norfolk VA Marty L. Miller Field Bethune-Cookman Missouri Valley May 20-24 Terre Haute IN Bob Warn Field Dallas Baptist Mountain West May 21-25 Las Vegas NV Wilson Stadium San Diego State Northeast May 22-25 Norwich CT Dodd Stadium Bryant Ohio Valley May 21-25 Jackson TN The Ballpark in Jackson Jacksonville (AL) State Pacific-12 No Tournament     Oregon State Patriot League May 10-11, 17-18 Lewisburg PA Depew Field Bucknell Southeastern May 20-25 Hoover AL Hoover Metro Stadium Louisiana State Southern May 20-25 Charleston SC Joseph P. Riley Jr. Park Georgia Southern Southland May 21-24 Conway AR Bear Stadium SE Louisiana Southwestern Athletic May 14-18 Fort Worth TX LaGrave Field Jackson State Summit League May 22-24 Sioux Falls SD Sioux Falls Stadium North Dakota State Sun Belt May 21-25 Mobile AL Stanky Field Louisiana-Lafayette West Coast May 22-24 Stockton CA Banner Island Ballpark Pepperdine Western Athletic May 21-25 Mesa AZ Cubs Park Sacramento State [/tablegrid]

 

[DJnVa]

NCAA tournament "stock report": http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/stock-report-week-13-4/

 

[Detts]

Indiana is up to 3rd in RPI after thumping Louisville yesterday.  Schwarber hit a 450+ HR in the ninth to ice it.  The team has won 24 of it's last 26 games.
 
 

 

[RedOctober3829]

Latest Perfect Game projections are up for the Field of 64
http://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=9870
 
National Seeds are: Virginia, Oregon State, Florida, FSU, Indiana, LA-Lafayette, Miami, and Ole Miss.

 

[mabrowndog]

Recent News:
 
* ESPN's Jeremy Mills breaks down the national tournament projections, including bubble teams and national seeds.
 
* Big week for the Cougars, as on Houston on Tuesday polished off a season sweep of Rice for the first time since 1991.
 
* Indiana did the same to Louisville on Tuesday.
 
* East Carolina RHP Jeff Hoffman, #5 on Baseball America's pre-draft prospect rankings, underwent Tommy John Surgery this week. The Pirates were going to be a long shot for the tournament anyway (30-23 overall, 14-13 C-USA), but that's horrible news for the kid.
 
* It was a great finish in the Ivy regular season. Columbia & Penn squared off in a 4-game series to end the regular season, with each team needing at least a split to ensure a one-game playoff between the schools for the Lou Gehrig division title. The Lions won the opener 6-0 behind a 7-inning 5-hit shutout by David Speer, then dropped game two 12-4. Game three went to the bottom of the 9th with the Quakers leading 3-0, but Columbia scored a pair to make it a one-run game. But with runners on 1st & 2nd, a ground-out ended their comeback. In a must-win situation, the Lions got it done in game four with a 5-2 win. That forced the playoff, and Speer was once again straight cash as he went 9 innings with another 5-hit shutout in Columbia's 4-0 victory.
 
Meanwhile in the Red Rolfe division, Yale & Dartmouth were set to finish their Ivy slates with 4-game home-and-home sets with Brown & Harvard respectively. After Yale got swept in a Providence twinbill on 4/25, rain the next day postponed Dartmouth's first two in Cambridge as well as Yale's home pair with the Bears. Yale was now 9-9, while Harvard was 7-9. On 4/27, Dartmouth swept two at home over Harvard, but Yale did the same over Brown back in New Haven. The Big Green still had to play a rescheduled twinbill in Cambridge on 4/29, and they needed a sweep to force a division tie -- and that's just what they got, 9-0 (a Mike Concato shutout) and 5-3. Dartmouth hosted the playoff, and they crushed the Bulldogs 11-4 for the Rolfe crown.
 
Columbia then hosted the best-of-three championship series, which was relatively anticlimactic. The Lions rolled 6-2 (Speer: 8 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 7 K, 116 pit) and 4-1.
 
* In the four-team Patriot playoffs on 5/10, #1 Bucknell swept #4 Navy 15-6 and 8-4, while #2 Army & #3 Lehigh split with the Mountain Hawks taking the opener 6-0 and the Cadets responding 3-2. That forced a rubber game on Sunday 5/11, and Lehigh advanced 3-1. So it'll be Bucknell & Lehigh in a best-of-three for the auto-bid this weekend, with a doubleheader on Friday 5/16 and a deciding game if necessary on Saturday 5/17.
 
* UMass's 5-4 win over VCU on Sunday was the 700th career victory for head coach Mike Stone. He's been leading the team since 1988, the year after I graduated. (He took over for Dick Bergquist, who replaced Earl Lorden. Pretty amazing that the Minutemen have had just three head coaches since the end of WW II). 
 
* Dartmouth coach Bob Whalen got win #500 on April 20 when the Big Green won a twinbill opener over Brown.

 

[RedOctober3829]

In this region, there's a nice race going on in the America East.  Stony Brook and Hartford are separated by one game and play this weekend for the regular season title.  Hartford features ace LHP Sean Newcomb(Boston area native) who will be a sure 1st round pick.  He throws in the mid-90's from the left side.  Defending champions Maine will be in the tournament field as well.  I love that the tourney will be at LeLacheur Park for the next 4 years.

 

[mabrowndog]

Speaking of coaching milestones (and this was almost 2 months ago), Augie Garrido of Texas became the winningest coach in history regardless of NCAA classification on March 24 when the Longhorns beat Texas State, 4-1. He's held the all-time D-I mark since 2003, but this win was his 1,894th, moving him past Gordie Gillespie.
 
Here's the full list of Coaches with 1,000 wins. Note Gene Stephenson in the #3 slot. This is Wichita State's first season without him at the helm in 36 years.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Keith Law is here watching Hartford P Sean Newcomb. He's sitting 93-94 with CH and CB in the mid 70s. 1 run 6 hits through 6-plus.

 

[canderson]

No idea where else to put this, but last night Penn State turned 2 triple plays. Yes, in the same game.

 

[TheGoldenGreek33]

Fitt's Week 14 stock report with conference tournaments having started today.
 
Evansville lost its opening round game today, and will likely need three wins with their backs against the wall to get in, which opens the door for another bubble team.

 

[RedOctober3829]

NC State lost in the ACCT and their season is done. This year was a failure for a team that will have 2 top 10 picks.

 

[mabrowndog]

A little late on these updates:
 
* Bucknell wins the Patriot auto-bid with a sweep of Lehigh. In the opener, Brett Smith's 2-run single in the last of the 8th broke a 2-2 tie and Joe Ogren knocked in another run on a fielder's choice grounder. That turned out to be game-winner, as the Bison had to hold off the Mountain Hawks in the 9th. Tyler Brong drove an unearned run home on a double, knocking out Bucknell starter Bryson Hough (8.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K). Brong then scored on a passed ball, but reliever Xavier Hammond got the final two outs to seal the 5-4 win. In the nightcap, the Bison broke a scoreless tie with a 5-run top of the 4th and Dan Weigel worked 7 solid innings (6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) to notch his 7th straight win, 7-2. Ogren, who reached base 12 times in 20 PA while scoring 6 runs and driving in 6 more in his 4 games (.429/.500/.600/1.200) was named tournament MVP.
 
* In an interesting twist, the Bison and Ivy champ Columbia have scheduled an impromptu 4-game set for this weekend, presumably to stay sharp in advance of the NCAA tournament. It'll be a pair of doubleheaders at Bucknell on Friday & Saturday.
 
* In the MEAC, North Division winner Delaware State came in with the conference's best league and overall records (17-7, 30-17) but the Hornets laid an egg, dropping their opener 8-4 to Savannah State (22-31) before being eliminated 6-1 by lowly Coppin State (12-34). Instead, Bethune-Cookman wins the double-elimination tournament, taking all 4 of its games to improve to 26-31 overall. In their opener, the Wildcats shut out MD-Eastern Shore 4-0 behind an 8 IP, 4 H, 0 BB, 14 K outing by Montana Durapau. Next came a 10-2 drubbing of host Norfolk State followed by a 16-6 blowout of Savannah, the latter featuring a 9-run 4th after trailing 3-1. That set up a rematch with Norfolk for the championship, and a 3-run double in the 2nd by Bryant Munoz game the Hornets all the runs they'd need in a 4-2 win for the NCAA auto-bid.  
 
* Another underdog will be representing the SWAC in the NCAAs. It was no surprise that top seed Alabama State (21-3, 37-20 overall) advanced to the championship game with wins over Grambling (11-10 in 11 innings), Alcorn State (6-2) and Grambling again (15-6). But Jackson State getting there (just 9-15 in conference) was an eyebrow-raiser. The Tigers first ousted West division winner Arkansas-Pine Bluff 7-1, behind Desmond Russell's complete game (5 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 8 K). Next they hammered Alabama A&M 12-3. Then they came from 3-2 down to score 5 times in the 4th and beat Prairie View A&M 8-4.
 
That set up the Sunday showdown with the Hornets. Trailing 5-2 in the top of the 4th, the Tigers put up 3 to tie it. After ASU went back ahead with a run in the B-5th, JSU scored three more in the T-6th to take their first lead, 8-6. It was still a 2-run game in the B-8th, 9-7, and the Hornets were able to get one back. But after a 1-out HBP in the last of the 9th, reliever Alexander Juday whiffed the final two ASU batters to clinch the 9-8 upset win and the auto-bid for the Tigers.
 
 

 

[mabrowndog]

Also, Cal Poly (45-10) clinched the Big West title and an NCAA auto-bid on Sunday, winning their 6th straight by beating Cal St-Northridge, 3-2.  Coupled with UC-Irvine's 4-3 loss to Cal State-Fullerton that capped a three-game sweep by the Titans, that left the 35-19 Anteaters 2.5 games behind the Mustangs with two league games remaining for each team.

 

[RedOctober3829]

In the SEC, they had the first round yesterday which is 4 play-in games to pair down the field from 12 to 8.  The only higher seed to lose was #8 Alabama as they lost to #9 Kentucky 7-1.  Tennessee, Texas A&M, and Georgia all lost.  Kentucky will take on #1 Florida, Arkansas will play #2 Ole Miss, Vanderbilt will play #3 LSU, and Mississippi State will play #4 South Carolina in the start of the double-elimination portion of the tournament.
 
Same thing in the ACC as there was 2 play in games.  NC State lost to UNC and Wake Forest lost to Georgia Tech.  Both teams advance onto pool play.

 

[TheGoldenGreek33]

In the SEC, they had the first round yesterday which is 4 play-in games to pair down the field from 12 to 8.  The only higher seed to lose was #8 Alabama as they lost to #9 Kentucky 7-1.  Tennessee, Texas A&M, and Georgia all lost.  Kentucky will take on #1 Florida, Arkansas will play #2 Ole Miss, Vanderbilt will play #3 LSU, and Mississippi State will play #4 South Carolina in the start of the double-elimination portion of the tournament.
 
Same thing in the ACC as there was 2 play in games.  NC State lost to UNC and Wake Forest lost to Georgia Tech.  Both teams advance onto pool play.

 
It's unbelievable how the 10th ranked team in the country is the six seed in the SEC.
 
edit: That game is going on now, by the way. Tune in for the likely 2015 No. 1 pick and former Sox draftee Alex Bregman. He's an absolute stud.

 

[DJnVa]

CUSA opener, MTSU with a slim 3-2 lead over ODU heading to the bottom of the 7th.

 

[mabrowndog]

 
It's unbelievable how the 10th ranked team in the country is the six seed in the SEC.
 
edit: That game is going on now, by the way. Tune in for the likely 2015 No. 1 pick and former Sox draftee Alex Bregman. He's an absolute stud.

 
As if on cue, he went yard for a 3-run shot in the 4th, as the Tigers put up a 4-spot to knock out Vandy starter Jared Miller. LSU up 6-1 behind Jared Poche (5 H, 1 BB, 2 K). Tigers just put the first two men on in their half of the 6th.

 

[DJnVa]

MTSU survives a bases loaded, 1 out jam in top of 9th to defeat ODU 3-2.

 

[mabrowndog]

* LSU tacks on 5 more to beat Vandy, 11-1 in 7 innings. Poche goes the distance (5 H, 1 BB, 3 K). Bregman ends up 3-for-4 with a double, HR, 1 R & 5 RBI, while RF Mark Laird goes 3-for-4 with a double, triple, 2 RBI & 4 runs scored.
 
* ACC: Clemson beats Duke 5-3. 
 
* #27 Arkansas with a 1-0 lead over #16 Ole Miss (T-4th).
 
* In a Southland opener, Lamar leads #23 Sam Houston 3-0 (T-4th).
 
* In the Sun Belt, #2 LA-Lafayette trails LA-Monroe 2-0 in the 1st.
 
* In the AAC, 2-seed UCF beats 7-seed UConn 7-1. The Huskies get 3-seed Houston next.
 
* 4-seed Wichita State eliminates MVC top seed Evansville 8-6 on a 2-run HR by Dayne Parker in the top of the 9th. Todd Butler becomes the first Shockers coach not named Gene Stephenson to ever win a Missouri Valley conference tournament game.
 
* Indiana State, the MVC 2-seed, is also on the verge of being eliminated as they trail 6-seed Missouri State 4-1 (B-7th). 
 
EDIT - Missouri State sends the Sycamores packing, 9-1.

 

[Detts]

* LSU tacks on 5 more to beat Vandy, 11-1 in 7 innings. Poche goes the distance (5 H, 1 BB, 3 K). Bregman ends up 3-for-4 with a double, HR, 1 R & 5 RBI, while RF Mark Laird goes 3-for-4 with a double, triple, 2 RBI & 4 runs scored.
 
* ACC: Clemson beats Duke 5-3. 
 
* #27 Arkansas with a 1-0 lead over #16 Ole Miss (T-4th).
 
* In a Southland opener, Lamar leads #23 Sam Houston 3-0 (T-4th).
 
* In the Sun Belt, #2 LA-Lafayette trails LA-Monroe 2-0 in the 1st.
 
* In the AAC, 2-seed UCF beats 7-seed UConn 7-1. The Huskies get 3-seed Houston next.
 
* 4-seed Wichita State eliminates MVC top seed Evansville 8-6 on a 2-run HR by Dayne Parker in the top of the 9th. Todd Butler becomes the first Shockers coach not named Gene Stephenson to ever win a Missouri Valley conference tournament game.
 
* Indiana State, the MVC 2-seed, is also on the verge of being eliminated as they trail 6-seed Missouri State 4-1 (B-7th). 
 
EDIT - Missouri State sends the Hoosiers packing, 9-1.

 
Indiana State is 'The Sycamores' (state tree of Indiana).
 

 
Indiana University is 'The Hoosiers'.
 
And they thumped Iowa last night.

 

[DJnVa]

The Big South had a Bull Durham issue: http://www.heraldonline.com/2014/05/21/5984868/ballpark-conditions-postpone-big.html?sp=/100/102/
 

Due to unplayable field conditions at Winthrop Ballpark, the Big South Baseball Tournament was canceled Wednesday. All four games were postponed to Thursday after an automatic sprinkler malfunction overnight caused parts of the infield to flood.
 

Read more here: http://www.heraldonline.com/2014/05/21/5984868/ballpark-conditions-postpone-big.html?sp=/100/102/#storylink=cpy

 

[DJnVa]

CUSA results:
 
MTSU-3, ODU-2
 
Rice-9, FIU-2
 

Michael Aquino and Skyler Ewing had four hits apiece and combined to drive in five runs as Rice cruised.
 

 
UTSA-4, UAB-1
 

Brock Hartson struck out 12 in 81⁄3 innings, allowing two hits and one unearned run as Texas-San Antonio held off Alabama-Birmingham.
 

 
ECU-9, Southern Miss-8 (11 innings)
 
Today:
 
10 am: ODU vs FIU (elimination game)
1:30: UAB vs. Southern Miss (elimination game)
5:00: MTSU vs. Rice
8:30: UTSA vs. ECU

 

[DJnVa]

In CUSA action, ODU eliminates FIU with 3-2 win and plays loser of MTSU/Rice game.

 

[mabrowndog]

 
Indiana State is 'The Sycamores' (state tree of Indiana).
 

 
Indiana University is 'The Hoosiers'.
 
And they thumped Iowa last night.

 
Yeesh. My geriatric ass hasn't brain-farted that horribly in at least 48 hours.
 
As someone who prayed to the God that is Larry Bird from the '78 NBA Draft through February 4, 1993, that's pretty embarrassing.

 

[RedOctober3829]

The opening of the America East Tournament has been pushed back until 4:20 pm due to rain. Maine will take on Stony Brook followed by Binghamton/Hartford. Games will be available for streaming on Americaeast.tv. Sean Newcomb will be on the hill for Hartford in the nightcap.

 

[mabrowndog]

* For the 2nd straight day, a notable upset in the ACC. Yesterday 9-seed GA Tech beat top seed and national #11 Miami, 6-3. Today 6-seed Maryland beat 3-seed and national #3 Virginia, 7-6. The Cavs trailed by 3 heading to the bottom of the 9th and a Joe McCarthy 2-run homer off Kevin Mooney made it a one-run game, but that's as close as they'd get. Miami and 5-seed and national #26 Clemson are tied 2-2 in the 6th. FWIW, GT got their comeuppance today in a 6-0 loss to 4-seed Duke.
 
* In the AAC, 7-seed UConn rebounded from its pasting at the hands of 2-seed UCF to knock off 3-seed and national #12 Houston, 7-2. The Cougars managed just a pair of runs despite 19 baserunners. LF Jon Testani went 3-for-4 including a solo HR in the 7th, scoring twice for the Huskies, and 3B Vinny Siena was 1-for-3 with a 2-run double. Anthony Kay recorded an 11-out save with 3.2 shutout innings.
 
* In the A-10, 4-seed VCU (which beat 5-seed Richmond 5-2 yesterday) moved to 2-0 with a 9-4 upset over top seed St. Louis. 7-seed Fordham eliminated 6-seed Dayton, 4-3. However, the Rams (9-4 losers yesterday to 2-seed St. Joe's)  may be next on the chopping block as they trail the Billikens 4-1 (T-5th). Meanwhile, 3-seed George Mason beat St. Joe's 5-4, leaving both teams 1-1 for the tournament. The Hawks play Richmond in an elimination game at 9:30 pm.
 
* In the Atlantic Sun, 2-seed Mercer is toast after back-to-back losses to 7-seed Stetson last night (7-5 in 10 innings) and 6-seed East Tennessee this afternoon (7-1). 8-seed North Florida is also done, losing tonight to Jacksonville. The 5-seed Dolphins trailed 6-4 heading to the last of the 9th, but they tied it up on a Braddock Rowe 2-run single, and walked off in the last of the 10th on an RBI single by Connor Marabell.
 
* In the Big Ten, 3-seed Illinois has eliminated 6-seed Ohio St, 6-5. Meanwhile 8-seed Iowa stayed alive by eliminating 4-seed Minnesota, 2-1. 

 

[RedOctober3829]

Stony Brook defeated Maine 4-1 in the first game in AE play. Currently, Sean Newcomb has 8 K's through 3 IP as Hartford and Binghamton are scoreless.

 

[mabrowndog]

* In the Big 12, 8-seed Oklahoma came from behind to upset 4-seed and national #22 Texas Tech, 9-8, eliminating the Red Raiders. Trailing 8-3, the Sooners scored 3 in the 8th and 3 more in the 9th, walking off on Sheldon Neuse's 2-run single that scored Kolbey Carpenter and Craig Aikin.
 

 
Later, 7-seed Baylor also pulled the upset, eliminating 3-seed Kansas, 4-3. The Bears plated all their runs in the 3rd off loser Frank Duncan. 2-seed and national #20 TCU defeated 6-seed West Virginia, 6-2. In the game of the day, 5-seed and #19 Texas leads top seed and #7 Oklahoma State, 1-0 in the T-3rd.

 

[mabrowndog]

CUSA results:
 
1:30: UAB vs. Southern Miss (elimination game)

 
The 3-seed Golden Eagles pull the upset over the 2-seed, 4-3. UAB scored 2 in the bottom of the 8th to tighten the scoreboard, but SoMiss held on and the Blazers are packing their bags.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Newcomb gives up a run but has 11 K's through 4 innings. Hartford leads 4-1.

 

[mabrowndog]

* In the MAC, 8-seed W.Michigan scored 4 runs in the top of the 9th to eliminate 5-seed and defending conference champs Bowling Green, 7-4. The damage was largely self-induced by the Falcons: Back-to-back 1-out singles, 2 ROEs, an RBI single, and 2 bases-loaded HBPs. Later, 3-seed Miami OH eliminated 2-seed C.Michigan, 4-3, with RF Chad Sedio cracking the big hit with a 2-run shot in the 4th.
 
* In the Missouri Valley, defending champion Wichita State is done. After going 12 innings to eliminate 8-seed Southern Illinois 2-1, the 4-seed Shockers ran out of steam in their 2nd game of the day, falling to 5-seed Illinois State, 6-1. Brock Stewart shut them down with 7 innings of 2-hit ball (1 BB, 8 K), allowing WSU their lone run in the 1st. Jeremy Rhoades followed with 2 hitless innings (1 BB, 3 K). The day began with 3-seed and national #30 Dallas Baptist edging 7-seed Bradley, 6-5. Later on, 6-seed Missouri State eliminated the Braves, handing them their 2nd loss of the day, 7-2.
 
* Some big battles in the SEC today:
 
--- 2-seed/#16 Ole Miss eliminated 6-seed/#10 Vandy, 7-2, as the Rebs busted open a 2-1 game with a 4-run top of the 7th, highlighted by 3B Austin Anderson's 2-run single.
 
--- Next, top seed/#14 Florida eliminated 4-seed/#9 South Carolina, 7-2. The Gators spotted the Cocks single runs in the 2nd & 3rd innings, but A.J. Puk settled down for the 4th. Bobby Poyner followed with 5 innings of 2-hit shutout ball to earn the win. 2B Casey Turgeon went 3-for-4, scoring once and knocking in a pair, while 3B Josh Tobias cracked a solo shot and C Taylor Gushue added a 2-run single.
 
--- In Game 3, it was 3-seed/#8 LSU defeating 7-seed/#27 Arkansas, 7-2. Aaron Nola worked 7.1 solid innings (2 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 7 K) and Joe Broussard, Nate Fury & Zac Person combined for 1.2 hitless relief innings to close it out. SS Alex Bregman was 2-for-5 with a double and a run, while RF Mark Laird went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI and a run. But the big Tiger bat belonged to C Tyler Moore, going 3-for-4 with an RBI double, a solo HR, and 2 runs scored.
 
--- In the nightcap, 5-seed/#21 Miss State leads 9-seed Kentucky, 1-0 in the top of the 4th. Both teams are 2-0 in the tournament.

 

[RedOctober3829]

14 Ks thru 7 for Newcomb. AE record is 18.

 

[mabrowndog]

14 Ks thru 7 for Newcomb. AE record is 18.

 
Stellar outing. Unfortunately, he was at 121 pitches. Sam McKay relieved him for the 8th (a 1-2-3 inning). 
 
By the way, 12 of those Ks were whiffs.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Stellar outing. Unfortunately, he was at 121 pitches. Sam McKay relieved him for the 8th (a 1-2-3 inning). 
 
By the way, 12 of those Ks were whiffs.

At one point in the game I think he had 9 Ks in a row. He's so filthy.

 

[mabrowndog]

* Tough day in the Colonial for 5-seed Northeastern. After knocking off 6-seed James Madison yesterday in an elimination game, 3-1, behind Nick Berger's complete game 4-hitter (10 K, 0 BB), the Huskies lost their second straight one-run game to 4-seed Delaware and were sent packing themselves. In yesterday's opener vs the Blue Hens, NU had grabbed a 3-0 lead in the 2nd and were up 3-1 heading to the last of the 7th. But Delaware got within a run in the bottom of the frame and went ahead for good with a pair in the 8th, all while UD's Dan Gatto recovered to go the distance, finishing with 7 shutout innings. Tonight, with the Hens coming off an 11-4 afternoon pasting by top seed William & Mary, NU once again drew first blood with a pair in the bottom of the first. But UD countered with 3 in the top of the 2nd, and lefty Brandon Hinkle held the Huskies at bay the next 7 innings. Luke Alicknavitch closed it out with a 1-2-3, 12-pitch 9th for the save in the 3-2 win.
 
* Clemson walks off with the 3-2 win over Miami, as Steven Wilkerson's 1-out single plates Tyler Slaton from 2nd. The Tigers (2-0) are the only unbeaten team in Pool A, while the Hurricanes drop to 0-2. A Clemson win over GA Tech tomorrow clinches a spot in the title game. Miami will play Duke Saturday and then wait for Sunday's selection show.
 

 

[mabrowndog]

* Richmond's en route to elimination from the A-10, trailing St. Joseph's 8-0 in the B-6th.
 
* In the Big Ten, 2-seed/#24 Nebraska beat 6-seed Michigan State, 3-2, behind 7 solid innings from Aaron Bummer (2 R, 0 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 7 K) and a pair of RBI from CF Ryan Boldt. The night games were all pushed back 90 minutes by the rain that delayed the earlier IL-OSU game. So the nightcap, top seed/#18 Indiana vs 5-seed Michigan, just got underway at around 10 pm Omaha time. They're scoreless in the top of the 3rd.
 
* In the Big East, top seed Creighton handled 4-seed Xavier with ease, 9-2. It was scoreless until the last of the 5th, when the Blue Jays plated 4, and they added 5 an inning later. LF Brad McKeown led the way (3/4, 2 R, 2 RBI) while 2B Jake Peter (2/4, 2 R, 3 RBI), CF Mike Gerber (2/5, R, 2 RBI) and 1B Reagan Fowler (2/4, RBI) did their part. Meanwhile 3-seed Seton Hall edged 2-seed St. John's, 1-0, behind a gem by Josh Prevost (9 IP, 4 H, 1 BB, 7 K, with 69 of 100 pitches for strikes). 
 
* Kentucky & Miss State now tied 4-4 in the top of the 7th.
 

 

[mabrowndog]

* In the Southern, top seed Western Carolina is done after losses to 8-seed Furman yesterday (3-2) and 5-seed GA Southern today (8-4). The Catamounts join 7-seed Elon and 9-seed NC-Greensboro (both eliminated in play-in games Tuesday) plus 10-seed The Citadel (4-2 losers today to 6-seed Wofford) on the SoCon sidelines. Furman, which won a play-in, is now 3-0 in the tournament after beating 5-seed Appalachian State today, 3-1.
 
* In the Sun Belt, top seed and national #2 LA-Lafayette won their 2nd straight in the tourney, 11-4 over 4-seed Texas State. 2-seed Texas-Arlington also improved to 2-0, beating 7-seed Troy, 7-3. Earlier today, 8-seed LA-Monroe eliminated 5-seed Western Kentucky, 8-6, and 3-seed Arkansas St eliminated 7-seed South Alabama, 4-3.

 

[soxhop411]

3-0 IU over Michigan so far

 

[RedOctober3829]

Maryland is beating FSU 4-0 in the 6th inning. Pretty stunning win if they get it. Back to back wins over national seeds UVA and FSU might get the Terps into a 2 seed.

 

[Detts]

3-0 IU over Michigan so far

IU 1 hit Michigan, winning 5-0.

 

[mabrowndog]

FSU put up 3 in the top of the 8th, but it's not enough and the Terps take it 5-3. Unfortunately the ACC's "Game Center" sucks rhinoceros balls, so there's no box score available. Only a smattering of team stats (duh...) and a nonsensical play-by-play feed. I'm so fucking sick of the smartphoneification of the internet.

 

[mabrowndog]

* A-10 - 4-seed VCU & 5-seed George Mason are the only unbeaten teams left, and the Patriots hold a 3-0 lead over the Rams with GMU batting in the top of the 9th. Next up, 1-seed St. Louis & 2-seed St. Joe's, each with a loss, square off in an elimination game. The loser of the former faces the winner of the latter tonight at 8 pm in another win-or-go-home affair.
 
* Colonial - The top two teams faced off this afternoon, having already won their openers. 2-seed College of Charleston prevailed over top seed William & Mary, 3-1, as Bailey Ober went the distance (9 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 0 BB, 4 K). A solo HR by RF Josh Smith was the only nuisance from the Tribe, while LF Brandon Murray and 1B Nick Pappas each went yard for the Chanticleers. Next up, 3-seed NC-Wilmington vs 4-seed Delaware. Two teams enter, one team leave. The winner faces W&M tonight in another battle to the death.

 

[mabrowndog]

* C-USA - A pair of elimination games on tap. Drew Dawg's 5-seeded ODU Monarchs face 4-seed Middle Tennessee at 4 pm, with the winner needing to beat top seed Rice twice tomorrow to advance. At 7:30 pm tonight, 3-seed Southern Miss plays 6-seed East Carolina, with the victor having to knock off surprising 7-seed Texas-San Antonio twice tomorrow.
 
* Horizon - After knocking out 2-seed Oakland with a 2-0 win yesterday, 3-seed Valparaiso just made it back-to-back shutout eliminations as they sent home 2-seed Illinois-Chicago, 1-0. Ellis Foreman held the Flames to 4 hits over 8 innings (1 BB, 5 K), and Karch Kowalczyk pitched a perfect 9th inning for his 11th save. Catcher Jake Hanson went 3-for-4 while driving in Kowalczyk with the Crusaders' lone run. Valpo moves on to face top seed Wright State in about 10 minutes in yet another elimination match. Later tonight, 4-seed Milwaukee and 6-seed Youngstown, both 2-0 in tournament play, square off, with the loser facing the Wright/Valpo survivor tomorrow at noon.

 

[RedOctober3829]

FSU put up 3 in the top of the 8th, but it's not enough and the Terps take it 5-3. Unfortunately the ACC's "Game Center" sucks rhinoceros balls, so there's no box score available. Only a smattering of team stats (duh...) and a nonsensical play-by-play feed. I'm so fucking sick of the smartphoneification of the internet.

Go to d1baseball.com.

 

[mabrowndog]

Go to d1baseball.com.

 
I did. They link to the ACC's "live stats" URL I posted above.
 
EDIT - Since my earlier post, they've updated the scores page with a "box score" link to FSU's page. My point is that it shouldn't even be necessary to wait for an updated link. The ACC ought to be able to provide a live box score and play-by-play feed that's easy to refresh and follow. Instead, we get that useless abomination that's "brought to us by AT&T". Such utter horseshit.

 

[mabrowndog]

* MAAC - 5-seed Monmouth has won consecutive elimination games today. Starting at 10:30 this morning, they played 15 innings before prevailing over 6-seed Manhattan, 8-7, in a game that saw the Jaspers score 5 in the top of the 9th to knot the score at 6-6 -- and it took a throw from LF Joe Bamford to catcher Kyle Perry to nail the potential lead runner Brendan Slattery at the plate and end the inning. Manhattan went ahead 7-6 with a run in the 12th, but Monmouth 2B Jake Gronsky came up in the bottom half with runners on 1st & 2nd and laced a double to center. Robbie Allessandrine scored, but the relay from Jaspers CF Evan Brown to 2B Yoandry Galan to C Chris Reynolds was in time to nab Steve Wilgus. Finally in the 15th, Bamford and Perry combined again, this time offensively, as the latter singled home the former for the walk-off win.
 
The Hawks didn't have much time to rest up or savor the victory, as an early afternoon date with 4-seed Quinnipiac awaited. After five relievers worked 7 innings against Manhattan, southpaw starter Jeff Singer gave Monmouth exactly what they needed, tossing a complete game 5-hitter (9 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K). The Hawks' bats jumped on Bobcats starter Nick Fabrizio for 3 runs in the 1st and added a pair in the 3rd on the way to a 5-2 win, sending Quinnipiac home for the year. The Hawks are now at .500 on the year (24-24), but there's no rest for the weary. Incredibly, they'll have to play a third elimination game tonight at 8:30 vs 2-seed Siena. A win over the Saints would be one of the great unheralded stories of the postseason. But before that, top seed Canisius and 3-seed Fairfield, both unbeaten in the tourney, get started at 5 pm.
 
* Mid-American - 6-seed Buffalo beat 3-seed Miami OH for the second time in the tournament, shutting out the RedHawks 4-0 and eliminating them. Senior righty Mike Burke went the distance, yielding 7 hits and no walks while striking out 4. The Bulls move on to face 7-seed Akron tomorrow, with the Zips having already beaten them yesterday, 7-1. Buffalo needs two wins to advance, while Akron requires just one. Meanwhile, top seed Ball State and 8-seed Western Michigan are just getting underway in another elimination match. The Cardinals won their first meeting on Wednesday, 5-3. Waiting in the wings for the winner is 4-seed Kent, which has won both its game so far.

 

[mabrowndog]

* Missouri Valley - Having lost to 3-seed Dallas Baptist on Tuesday, the 6-seed Bears of Missouri State came into today's action needing two wins over the Patriots. In game, the Bears led 3-1 before DBU scored 2 in the bottom of the 9th to tie it. But in the top of the 10th, MOSU plated a pair or unearned runs (on an error by Patriots 2B Aaron Meyer followed by a wild pitch) to regain the lead. Jake Powers, who'd surrendered the tying runs in the 9th, retired DBU in order to earn the win. Bears starter Jon Harris pitched a solid 7.1 innings (1 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 6 K).
 
They're underway in game two, which is now an elimination match, and it's not going nearly as well for the Bears. DBU put up a 7-spot in the first inning on 7 hits & off sophomore Sam Perez, who retired just one batter before yielding to lefty Matt Hall. It's now 7-2, as MOSU has gotten two back so far in the bottom of the 2nd. The survivor gets unbeaten 5-seed Illinois State tomorrow, and will need two wins to knock off the Redbirds for the auto-bid.
 
* Northeast - 3-seed Sacred Heart eliminated 4-seed Wagner, 13-8. Top seed Bryant and 2-seed Central CT are scoreless in the 2nd. SHU gets the loser of that one in a survival match tomorrow.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Binghamton eliminated Maine 6-3. They'll face the loser of Hartford-SB tomorrow afternoon.

 

[mabrowndog]

* Ohio Valley - Three teams have been eliminated from the field, and all were sent packing by 3-seed Jacksonville (AL) State. Yesterday they dispatched SIU-Edwardsville, 7-5, behind 3B Ryan Sebra and the Bishop Boys, SS Andrew & CF Michael. They combined to go 9-for-15 with 4 RBI and 4 runs scored. Earlier this afternoon, the Gamecocks hammered 6-seed Eastern Illinois, 13-2, as Casey Antley went the distance (9 IP, 2 ER, 9 H, 2 BB, 5 K), DH Paschal Petrongolo & 1B Tyler Gamble each went 4-for-5 with a HR while combining for 3 R & 7 RBI, and Sabra had another 3-hit performance while knocking in 3. And in a game that just went final, JSU dominated 5-seed Morehead State, 7-1, with starter Adam Polk getting some LOB luck (just 1 ER on 6 H & 5 BB in 7 IP) and a couple of different offensive stars in 2B Eddie Mora-Loera (3/5, 2 doubles, 2 RBI, 3 R) and RF Griff Gordon (3/5, triple, 3 RBI, 2 R). 
 
The Gamecocks are themselves candidates for elimination, having lost to EIU on Wednesday. So tomorrow at 1 pm they'll face the loser of tonight's battle between 1-seed SE Missouri and 2-seed Tennessee Tech, while the winner lies in wait.
 
* Ivy champ Columbia & and Patriot winner Bucknell split the first of their NCAA preparatory doubleheaders today, with the Bison taking the opener 2-1 and the Lions prevailing in the second game, 3-1. They'll meet for another pair tomorrow.
 
* SEC - Great elimination game underway between 7-seed/#27 Arkansas and 2-seed/#16 Ole Miss. They met earlier in the tournament with the Razorbacks winning 2-1. In today's match, the Hogs scored a run in the top of the 8th to tie it 7-7, and the Rebels are batting in the bottom half with 2 out and Braxton Lee on first.
 
EDIT - And Lee just got picked off to end the inning. On to the 9th. Later tonight, it's 1-seed/#14 Florida vs 5-seed/#21 Miss State.