2013 Baseball World Series Super Regionals Breakdown
Chapel Hill Super Regional: South Carolina at #1 North Carolina
UNC is one of only four teams moving on that lost one game in the Regional. The Tar Heels played in arguably the best game of the Regional round in the Regional clinching game against FAU. UNC took a 6-2 lead into the ninth inning, but gave up six runs — including a grand slam by Tyler Rocklein — to trail 8-6. The Tar Heels tied the game to send it to extras, but fell behind again in the 12th after the second-seeded Owls (42-22) got a three-run homer by Levi Meyer in the top of the inning. The Tar Heels then scored three runs in the 12th to tie the game yet again. Cody Stubbs singled with the bases loaded in the 13th inning to help No. 1 overall seed North Carolina avoid a huge upset by edging Florida Atlantic 12-11 on Monday in a wild Regional Championship game.
The Gamecocks, on the other hand, were not really challenged over the weekend. South Carolina defeated Liberty 6-4 on Monday afternoon to claim the NCAA Columbia Regional title at Carolina Stadium, securing the program's fourth straight trip to the Super Regionals. It will be the Gamecocks' (42-18) 11th trip to the Super Regionals in the last 14 years, which ranks second in the nation behind Florida State during that span. The win is South Carolina's 27th-straight postseason win at home, including a 16-0 mark at Carolina Stadium.
North Carolina has been an offensive powerhouse all season. The team outscored their opponents 518-203 on the season, including a 462-180 RBI edge. Colin Moran leads the Tar Heels with 13 home runs and 86 RBI. Stubbs leads the squad in hits with 94, doubles with 24 and is second in RBI with 76. Kent Emanuel is the team's top pitcher, carrying an 11-3 record in 15 starts with a 2.7 ERA and has thrown three shutouts.
L.B. Dantzler is South Carolina's top power hitter, knocking out 15 doubles, 15 home runs and 51 RBI, all team-highs. His 66 hits are second on the team and he has also scored 46 times, eight more than any other Gamecock. Jordan Montgomery, who has started all 12 of his appearances, carries a 5-1 record, as well as a 1.67 ERA. Nolan Belcher, who has started 16 games, leads the team in strikeouts with 94. Tyler Webb has 17 saves.
Raleigh Super Regional: Rice at North Carolina State
NC State will host its first Super Regional ever and is seeking its first trip to Omaha since 1968. The Super Regional is the second consecutive for the Raleigh school and fourth since 2003. The Pack has advanced to the Super Regional round in each of the three times it has hosted a Regional championship game at Doak Field at Dail Park. Sunday’s win improved the Wolfpack’s record to 10-1 in its three hosting gigs since the 2003 renovation. In three games this weekend, NC State allowed just three runs, the fewest the Pack has ever allowed in 26 NCAA Regional appearances. Sunday’s win was the Wolfpack’s 47th of the season, which ranks as the fourth most in school history. State will need to advance to Omaha to match the program record of 49, set in 1993.
Rice had a tough time during the Regional, having to go 11 innings in the first game, winning 1-0 in the second, getting blown out 11-0 in the first title game, before blowing out Oregon in the second title game 11-4. The Owls, now 44-18 overall, advance to the Super Regionals for the tenth time since the NCAA adopted the format in 1999. It is the team's first trip to the Super Regional since 2009, when it was swept by LSU.
Michael Ratterree leads Rice with nine home runs and 41 RBI, which is second on the team. Michael Aquino has eight bombs and 42 RBI, tops on the team. His 74 hits are also tops on the squad. All three of the weekend starters carry 8-4 records into the Super Regionals and have ERA's of 2.81 or lower. Austin Kubitza has 126 strikeouts to lead the team, as well as his 8-4 record and 2.02 ERA.
Tarran Senay leads the team with eight home runs and 56 RBI, but NC State is more of a doubles team. Five players have double digit doubles, led by Brett Austin's 20. Carlos Rodon continues to have an impressive season on the mound, carrying a 9-2 record with a 3.19 ERA in 16 starts. In 110 innings he has struck out 161 hitters, while walking just 40.
Fullerton Super Regional: UCLA at #5 Cal State Fullerton
Three pitchers came into the Fullerton Regional this past weekend but only one, Cal State Fullerton’s Justin Garza, left unscathed. Garza threw a gem against Arizona State, going 8 1/3 innings, walking none, giving up four hits and striking out nine in the Titans' Winners Bracket 1-0 win. With Garza and Thomas Eshelman each getting 12th wins, they now hold the school's record for wins by a freshman. The two weren't the only impressive pitchers, however, as the staff limited opponents to two runs on 13 hits and no walks. The Bruins on the other hand had to come back in two of their three wins this past weekend, as both San Diego State and Cal Poly took early leads on UCLA. At one point, Cal Poly was up 4-0 before the Bruins scored six unanswered to win. Adam Plutko is now 5-0 in five all-time postseason appearances, logging a 0.97 ERA. He moved into sole possession of first place on UCLA's all-time career postseason wins list, breaking the tie with Trevor Bauer who previously had four postseason wins. Cody Regis tied Eric Valent (1996-98) for the most RBI in UCLA postseason history (20).
Cal State Fullerton has advanced to its 11th Super Regional in 15 tries dating back to 1999 when Super Regional play began. The Titans have also advanced to their ninth super regional after winning the regional at Goodwin Field. Fullerton is making its first Super Regional appearance since 2010, and the Titans will once again be playing UCLA, but the series will held at Goodwin Field – in 2010 the three-game set was held at Jackie Robinson Stadium. Cal State Fullerton and UCLA will meet for the third time in Super Regional play. The Titans hold a 7-4 edge over UCLA in the postseason, and a 3-2 record in Super Regional play. Fullerton won two games in 2007, while UCLA won 2-of-3 in 2010. This is UCLA's seventh regional title and the fifth since the new format was adopted in 1999...it is also the fourth regional title under head coach John Savage. UCLA has advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals in consecutive seasons for the first time in program history...the Bruins are also making their fourth NCAA Super Regional appearance in the last seven years...UCLA has swept each NCAA Regional in those four years (2007, 2010, 2012 and 2013). The two teams faced off twice this season on April 2nd and May 14th. Cal State Fullerton won both matchups.
Baton Rouge Super Regional: Oklahoma at #4 LSU
Despite going undefeated in the Blacksburg (Va.) Regional, Oklahoma got a scare from Connecticut in the first winner’s bracket game. They finally won in 12 innings by a score of 5-3 after scoring three runs in the top of the first but not scoring again until the 12th. The Sooners also had to rally from a 3-0 deficit against third-seeded Coastal Carolina in the first game. Oklahoma won its second straight NCAA Regional championship. The Sooners claimed the Charlottesville, Virginia Regional title, following four straight elimination-game wins, in 2012 and a Super Regional victory at the same site in 2010. LSU (55-9) won its 20th Regional title by sweeping all three games in its Regional. This is LSU’s third Super Regional since 2009, the year the Tigers won the College World Series.
Mason Katz has 15 homers and 68 RBI, both team-highs. The Tigers have three players with 17 doubles, two others with 14 and another with 10. Alex Bregman, who carries a .385 average and is one of the players with 17 doubles, also has six triples. Aaron Nola has an 11-0 record and 1.82 ERA through 15 starts. However, his more impressive stat maybe that he has struck out 111 hitters, while only walking 17. Chris Cotton has 16 saves.
Matt Oberste is the team's top hitter, leading the team in average (.376), runs (53), hits (89), doubles (18), triples (four), home runs (11) and RBI (60). Jonathan Gray, who many expect to be the top pick in this week's MLB draft, brings in a 10-2 record and 1.59 ERA. He has struck out 138 hitters while walking just 22.
Corvallis Super Regional: Kansas State at #3 Oregon State
Oregon State's Super Regional appearance will mark the fifth in the program's history and fourth that will be played at Goss Stadium. OSU advanced to the College World Series with wins in 2005, 2006 and 2007. The Beavers' (48-10 overall) most recent Super Regional appearance was in Nashville in 2011. Oregon State required a comeback in its first game against UTSA, needing to score twice in the bottom of the ninth to win. The Beavers also needed a ninth-inning run to defeat UCSB. The easiest game of the Regional was against Texas A&M, which Oregon State defeated 6-1 in the Regional title game. Kansas State's offense exploded in the first two games, as the Wildcats scored 20 against Wichita State and seven against Bryant. They squeaked by Arkansas 4-3 in the Regional title game. The Super Regional appearance is the first in Wildcat history.
Dylan Davis leads the Beavers in hits (80), doubles (22), triples (three) and RBI (55). Andrew Moore has been impressive on the mound for the Beavers with a 13-1 record in 16 games, including 15 starts. He also has a 1.22 ERA and 61 strikeouts. Matt Boys has also been clutch on the mound, going 10-3 with a 2.2 ERA in 16 starts. He has a team-high 106 punch-outs.
Jared King has 15 doubles, six home runs and 51 RBI for Kansas State, while Shane Conlon has a team-high seven bombs. Matt Wivinis and Blake McFadden lead the starters with six wins. Jake Matthys has nine saves.
Charlottesville Super Regional: Mississippi State at #6 Virginia
With an 11-3 rout of Elon on Sunday night, Virginia completed a three-game sweep through the NCAA tournament's Charlottesville Regional and advanced to a Super Regional for the fourth time in five seasons. The Wahoos also reached the 50-victory mark for the third time in four seasons. Ninth ranked Mississippi State returns to Super Regional play for the second time in three seasons as the Bulldogs knocked off Central Arkansas 6-1 to capture the Starkville Regional championship Monday night. MSU won a home regional for the first time since 2000. The Bulldogs completed their third straight regional appearance with a trip to the Super Regional round for the first time since 2011. Two victories at Virginia would send MSU to the College World Series for the first time since 2007.
Hunter Renfroe continues to lead the Bulldog offense. Last weekend in the Regional, he had four RBI, including two in the Regional clinching win. His 15 home runs are nine more than the next teammate and his 58 RBI are 23 more than the nearest Bulldog. Jonathan Holder has 17 saves on the year.
In the Regional Nick Howard hit .462 with two RBI, Nate Irving hit .400 with two RBI, and Kenny Towns hit .333 with four RBI for Virginia. Scott Silverstein has a 10-1 record in 15 starts with a 2.86 ERA and a squad-high 69 strikeouts. The Cavs offense struggled for the first two games, scoring only two games in each game before exploding for 11 runs in the Regional clincher. If the offense clicks, watch out.
Tallahassee Super Regional: Indiana at #7 Florida State
By winning their 19th consecutive NCAA Regional game, the 'Noles earned a Super Regional berth for the sixth consecutive season and the 13th time in the program's storied history. In three games against Savannah State and Troy the Seminoles (47-15) outscored their opponents 32-4. Indiana (46-14) advanced to the first NCAA Super Regional in school history. The Hoosiers went 3-0 inside Bart Kaufman Field during the NCAA Bloomington Regional. Indiana becomes the first Big Ten institution to reach a Super Regional since Michigan went to Corvallis, Oregon in 2007.
Kyle Schwarber has belted 17 balls out of the park for Indiana and has knocked in 50 runs. Scott Donley leads the team with 56 RBI, while Sam Travis has 51 RBI to go along with 20 doubles and nine home runs. Aaron Slegers has a 9-1 record and 1.94 ERA in 16 starts, while Joey DeNato has a 9-2 record in his 16 starts. DeNato also has a team-leading 78 strikeouts.
Marcus Davis has 20 doubles, nine home runs and 61 RBI to lead the 'Noles. D.J. Stewart leads the team in hits (78), doubles (25) and is second with 56 RBI. Scott Sitz carries a 10-1 record and 1.59 ERA in 15 starts into the Super Regional. Luke Weaver has a squad-leading 114 strikeouts, while Brandon Leibrandt also has 10 wins and Robby Coles has nine saves.
Nashville Super Regional: Louisville at #2 Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt and Coach Corbin were able to improve on their 1-3 mark in Regional championship games and advance to Super Regionals next weekend against Louisville. For the Commodores, it is their third trip to the Super Regionals in the last four seasons. Vanderbilt lost in three games to Florida State in 2010 and won the first two games of its home series with Oregon State in 2011. Other than the first game against Georgia Tech, which forced the second title game, Vanderbilt had no problem with any of its other opponents over the weekend.
Louisville’s offense was on fire last weekend, scoring 30 runs in three games, including 12 in the Regional title win over Oklahoma State. The top-seeded and eighth ranked Cardinals clinched their third NCAA Super Regional berth in seven seasons by sweeping their opponents for the first time in a Regional. The Cardinals earned their first NCAA Regional title since winning the Louisville Regional in 2009. U of L also advanced to a Super Regional in 2007 after winning the Columbia, Missouri Regional to kick off the program's first ever march to Omaha and the College World Series. Overall, Louisville improved to 14-10 in NCAA Regional games and 17-15 in the NCAA Championship.
Tony Kemp continues to be Vanderbilt's table setter, with a near .400 average, 102 hits, six triples and 32 steals, all of which are team-highs. Connor Harrell provides the pop, knocking 12 balls out of the yard and hitting in 66. The Commodores have one of the, if not the, top two starting pitchers in the country. Tyler Beede is still undefeated, with a 14-0 record in 16 appearances, all starts. Kevin Ziomek is 11-2 in 16 starts and has a 1.92 ERA and 111 strikeouts, both team-highs. Brian Miller has 16 saves.
Ty Young leads Louisville with 57 RBI. Jeff Gardner has nine home runs and 15 doubles, both team highs, while Adam Engel has stolen 40 bases. Jeff Thompson has started 15 games and has a 10-1 record with a 2.06 ERA and 100 strikeouts. Chad Green is 10-3 with a 2.22 ERA. Nick Burdi has 15 saves and has given up just four runs, three earned, in 32.2 innings. He also has struck out 59 batters and walked 11.
