INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Following its 3-2 record in the Gulf South Conference Championship, the Valdosta State baseball team moved up one spot in the final of three public rankings in the NCAA Division II Baseball South Region Poll.
The Blazers rattled off three-straight wins with bookend losses to Delta State, including a 7-6 setback to the Statesmen on Championship Tuesday where the Blazers battled back and had the tying run at third base in the bottom of the ninth. Despite the loss, VSU performed well in the championship and set itself up for a potential at-large bid to the NCAA South Regional.
VSU was seventh in the rankings last week as Tampa remained the top-team in the poll this week. West Florida, the GSC runner-up remained second, followed by Delta State, who won the GSC championship. Eckerd remained fourth, followed by Nova Southeastern. VSU replaced Mississippi College, who it knocked out of the GSC Championship at sixth, while Embry-Riddle moved from ninth to seventh and Barry remained eighth. Mississippi College fell to ninth this week, while Florida Tech remained tenth.
The 56-team field for the 2019 NCAA Division II Baseball Championship will be announced on NCAA.com on Sunday, May 12 at 10 p.m. ET, with eight selections coming from the South Region. Winners of the Gulf South Conference, Sunshine State Conference and Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournaments will receive an automatic bid to the regional, with the final five spots earning at-large bids. Spring Hill College of the SIAC will earn one of the eight spots no matter what as it won the SIAC Tournament.
If the tournament began today, Tampa and West Florida would both play hosts to the regional round. Tampa would entertain the Nos. 4, 5, 8 seeds, while West Florida would host the Nos. 3, 6, 7 seeds. The winner of each “site” will then play a Super Regional in a best two-of-three format, May 24-25, to determine who will advance to the 2019 NCAA Division II College World Series, scheduled for June 1-8 at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C.
VSU (30-21) is looking for its 20thappearance in the NCAA Championship as VSU won the national championship in 1979 for the school’s first national title. The Blazers are 50-44 all-time in the NCAA Championship with the title in 1979, along with two third-place finishes and the team finished fourth three times.
Check back with vstateblazers.com for information on how to access the selection show later this weekend.
