REGIONAL THREAD: Athens, GA May 31st - June 3rd, 2019
What: 2019 NCAA Baseball Athens Regional
Who:
1. Georgia 44-15 (SEC at Large)
2. FAU 40-19 (C-USA at Large)
3. Florida State 36-21 (ACC at Large)
4. Mercer 35-27 (Southern Auto)
When:
Friday, May 31st
Game 1 - No. 2 FAU 8 vs No. 3 Florida State 13
Game 2 - No. 1 Georgia 13 No. 4 Mercer 3
Saturday, June 1st
Game 3 - No. 2 FAU 10 No. 4 Mercer 6
Game 4 - No. 1 Georgia 3 No. 3 Florida State 12
Sunday, June 2nd
Game 5 - No. 2 FAU 0 No. 1 Georgia 13
Game 6 - No. 1 Georgia 1 No. 3 Florida State 10
Where: Foley Field
Stats: Here
Video: TBA Daily
Team Notes:
Bulldogs
For the fifth time in school history, and second season in a row, Georgia has earned a national seed for the NCAA Baseball Championship. The Bulldogs (44-15) will be making their 12th overall appearance in an NCAA Regional including their sixth as a regional host at Foley Field.
Georgia has won four of five previous regionals in Athens, advancing in 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2008.
Coming into the this year's regional, the Bulldogs are not known for their hitting prowess (.270 AVG), but do possess one of the best rotations in the NCAA. They enter regional play with the 3rd best RPI in the country while being ranked 6th in the nation in the Coaches Poll.
Starters Emerson Hancock (8-2, 1.56), Tony Locey (10-2, 2.68), and Tim Elliott (6-3, 2.70) net a remarkable .231 ERA as a unit, and have combined for 280 strikeouts on the year, while holding opponents to a mere .169 average at the plate. If there is a weakness to be exploited against the trio, it would be in the homerun department, where 17 balls have sailed over the fence.
From an individual hitting standpoint, Georgia is led by primary infielder Aaron Schunk's .337 average, 45 RBI, and .565 slugging percentage. Schunk also serves as a closer, and has eight saves on the season to his credit while notching a 2.49 ERA.
Owls
As the best overall hitting team in the Athens Regional, the Owls currently have nine batters above the .300 mark and four above .320. They currently rank 6th nationally in hits (636), and 21st nationally at the plate with a .299 team batting average.
FAU's RPI settled in at 37 as of selection Monday, gaining one spot after making it to the finals of the C-USA Tournament Championship game where they lost 4-0 to Southern Miss and were shut out for just the first time on the season.
Historically, Florida Atlantic (40-19) has won just one game in nine tries against opening opponent FSU although they haven't played them since 1998. The Owls own a 16-11 edge over Mercer while they were both ASUN members, and last met the Bears in 2006. FAU has never faced off against Georgia.
Coach McCormack stated that he will keep the same rotation as has been used most recently, with RHP Blake Sanderson (8-2, 3.93) getting the nod in game one, and RHP Mike Ruff (6-4, 5.49) taking game two. Although McCormack did provide a disclaimer by stating that adjustments might be made based on situations presented.
This will be the Owls' fourth regional appearance in the last five years and the fifth in the last seventh. If victorious in the end, they will qualify for just their second super regional birth in program history.
Seminoles
Florida State (36-21) has a relatively deceptive RPI of 50 given the ability to score runs, as the team has been hampered by inconsistency on the mound for 2019 which was highlighted a mid-season rough patch of 6-12 after a 13-1 start. Finding a true ace, and consistently reliable starters during mid-week games, has been an issue.
The top hurlers for FSU are RHP CJ Van Eyk (9-3, 3.74) and LHP Drew Parrish (7-5, 4.81), while the collective staff holds a 4.67 ERA overall.
Their participation in the regional is also marked by the retirement of longtime Head Coach Mike Martin, who became the NCAA all-time leader in career wins in 2018 and will hand over the reigns at season's end after 39 years at the helm of the program.
In honest fashion, Martin said he didn't sleep at all the night before tournament selections were announced, as it was unclear whether his team would make the final cut; something which had never happened during his tenure.
The Noles' top two hitters in Robby Martin (.346) and Mike Salvatore (.323) combine for a tournament best 38 doubles between them, and account for 97 RBI on the year together. Drew Mendoza rounds out the only other hitter above the .300 mark at .317, and has a team best 14 homers to his credit.
Bears
Mercer will make its fourth NCAA Division I Baseball Championship appearance in the last 10 years and first since 2015. With a current RPI of 107 after final updates were made on Sunday, they shot up 37 spots after clinching the Southern Conference Championship.
During the span, the Bears made a seven-game run through the tournament, including five consecutive wins in elimination contests.
Mercer has faced all three regional participants in the past. In addition to the noted past performance against FAU, the Bears played Georgia to a 4-3 extra-inning win in Athens on March 14, 2017. They also took on the Seminoles this season in a non-conference series, dropping all contests while being outscored 26-7.
The Bears (35-27) have a collective .269 AVG at the plate, which is regarded by most as their strength, but only one batter above the .300 mark in that of Kyle Dockus who is hitting .317. However, three others are at or better than .294. Of note, they have the most homeruns of any team in the regional with 70 and outpaces FSU (69), Georgia (65), and FAU (60).
The typical starting staff of RHP Kevin Coulter (5-3, 3.95), LHP Tanner Hall (8-5, 4.67), and Sawyer Gipson-Long (8-3, 4.90) combine for a 4.51 ERA with the total Mercer staff averaging out at 4.90.
FAU is the #2 seed for a reason, so I think they will end up pushing this thing to the end with a chance to win the regional.
What: (2) FAU vs. (3) FSU
When: Fri, May 31st at 12:00 PM
Where: Foley Field
Stream: ESPN3
Stats: Here
Projected Pitchers:
FAU - RHP Blake Sanderson (8-2, 3.93)
FSU - LHP Drew Parrish, Jr. (7-5, 4.81)
Just two hours away from first pitch in Athens! Don't forget that the game will be streamed on WatchESPN.
We're still are not sure about who is getting the nod to start, but FAU listed Blake Sanderson as the probable starter earlier this week.
As expected, #FAU will turn to Blake Sanderson to start on the mound in Game 1 of the Athens Regional.
— FAU Owl's Nest (@FAU_Owls_Nest) May 31, 2019
This will be the first time the Owls have played #FSU since 1998. No seriously, the Noles have ducked us for over 20 years. Time to show them why! 👊👊👊
We're lucky to be scoreless right now.
Nervy start for the Owls, who see Sanderson give up two straight hits before recording a single out. 😬
— FAU Owl's Nest (@FAU_Owls_Nest) May 31, 2019
The infield steps up, sandwiching a Sanderson strikeout to retire the Noles.
We're scoreless, with #FAU coming up to bat in the bottom of the first.
We made that too easy for #FSU's Drew Parish, who only needed 11 pitches to set aside the Owls' half of the inning.#FAU is tied with the Noles at 0 as we head into the second.
— FAU Owl's Nest (@FAU_Owls_Nest) May 31, 2019
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