University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Baseball Selected to NCAA Regionals in San Diego
5/28/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Minnesota Baseball Selected to NCAA Regionals in San Diego
The Minnesota baseball team (40-16) will head to San Diego for the NCAA Regionals on June 1-4. The Golden Gophers will be the No. 3 seed in the regional and will face No. 2 Cal State Fullerton (33-23) on Friday, June 1 at 6 p.m. (CT).
San Diego (43-16) will be the No. 1 seed, and will host the regional at Tony Gwynn Stadium on the campus of San Diego State. The Toreros will face Fresno State (36-27) in the late game on Friday, June 1 at 10 p.m. (CT)
“I am very proud of what this team has accomplished this year,” said Minnesota Head Coach John Anderson. “This is a group of players that really deserved a shot at playing in the NCAA Tournament. They have been a very flexible team throughout the year and not let any issues on and off the field distract them from playing together as a team. It is always a tough regional when you head to California, and these are three very good teams we have been put in the region with. However, we have a lot of confidence in our team and we are looking forward to a good competitive regional in San Diego.”
Minnesota received one of two at-large bids from the Big Ten to go along with the automatic bid that Ohio State captured by winning the Big Ten Tournament on May 27. The Golden Gophers finished the Big Ten tied for second at 18-9, advanced to their seventh straight Big Ten Tournament Championship and reached the 40-win mark for the first time since 2003.
San Diego received the No. 8 National Seed in this tournament, won the West Coast Conference regular-season and won the best of three series with Gonzaga to claim the automatic bid for the conference. San Diego finished with a conference record of 18-3 in the West Coast Conference.
Cal State Fullerton received an at-large NCAA Tournament bid from the Big West to receive its 15th straight postseason bid. The Titans finished fifth in the Big West at 10-11, but claimed series wins against national seeds Rice and Long Beach State earlier in the season.
Fresno State defeated Nevada in the WAC Tournament Championship on May 27 to receive the conference’s automatic bid. The Bulldogs also finished first in the regular-season in the WAC at 17-7.
It marks the third NCAA Regional in a row that the Golden Gophers have been shipped out to California. In 2003, Minnesota went 1-2 in an NCAA Regional at Long Beach, Calif. Minnesota traveled to Cal State Fullerton in 2004, and faced the Titans in the first game of the tournament.
Minnesota’s matchup with Cal State Fullerton will be the eighth meeting between the programs since 2003. In 2003, Minnesota won two out of three against the then second-ranked Titans at the Metrodome. The Golden Gophers traveled to Fullerton and dropped two of three games to the Titans in 2004. Minnesota also faced Cal State Fullerton again in the NCAA Tournament in 2004 and dropped a 7-1 decision to the Titans, who eventually went on to win the 2004 National Title.
The Golden Gophers will be making their 28th overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament in the program’s history, and the 15th under John Anderson. Minnesota is 49-52 in NCAA Tournament play, including three National Championships in 1956, 1960 and 1964 under former head coach Dick Siebert.
Minnesota joined Michigan and Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament, marking the first time since 2000 that the Big Ten has sent three teams to the NCAA Tournament. In 2000, the Golden Gophers went to the NCAA Tournament along with Illinois and Penn State. This year, Michigan is playing in Vanderbilt’s regional and Ohio State is playing in Texas A&M’s regional.
The Minnesota baseball team (40-16) will head to San Diego for the NCAA Regionals on June 1-4. The Golden Gophers will be the No. 3 seed in the regional and will face No. 2 Cal State Fullerton (33-23) on Friday, June 1 at 6 p.m. (CT).
San Diego (43-16) will be the No. 1 seed, and will host the regional at Tony Gwynn Stadium on the campus of San Diego State. The Toreros will face Fresno State (36-27) in the late game on Friday, June 1 at 10 p.m. (CT)
“I am very proud of what this team has accomplished this year,” said Minnesota Head Coach John Anderson. “This is a group of players that really deserved a shot at playing in the NCAA Tournament. They have been a very flexible team throughout the year and not let any issues on and off the field distract them from playing together as a team. It is always a tough regional when you head to California, and these are three very good teams we have been put in the region with. However, we have a lot of confidence in our team and we are looking forward to a good competitive regional in San Diego.”
Minnesota received one of two at-large bids from the Big Ten to go along with the automatic bid that Ohio State captured by winning the Big Ten Tournament on May 27. The Golden Gophers finished the Big Ten tied for second at 18-9, advanced to their seventh straight Big Ten Tournament Championship and reached the 40-win mark for the first time since 2003.
San Diego received the No. 8 National Seed in this tournament, won the West Coast Conference regular-season and won the best of three series with Gonzaga to claim the automatic bid for the conference. San Diego finished with a conference record of 18-3 in the West Coast Conference.
Cal State Fullerton received an at-large NCAA Tournament bid from the Big West to receive its 15th straight postseason bid. The Titans finished fifth in the Big West at 10-11, but claimed series wins against national seeds Rice and Long Beach State earlier in the season.
Fresno State defeated Nevada in the WAC Tournament Championship on May 27 to receive the conference’s automatic bid. The Bulldogs also finished first in the regular-season in the WAC at 17-7.
It marks the third NCAA Regional in a row that the Golden Gophers have been shipped out to California. In 2003, Minnesota went 1-2 in an NCAA Regional at Long Beach, Calif. Minnesota traveled to Cal State Fullerton in 2004, and faced the Titans in the first game of the tournament.
Minnesota’s matchup with Cal State Fullerton will be the eighth meeting between the programs since 2003. In 2003, Minnesota won two out of three against the then second-ranked Titans at the Metrodome. The Golden Gophers traveled to Fullerton and dropped two of three games to the Titans in 2004. Minnesota also faced Cal State Fullerton again in the NCAA Tournament in 2004 and dropped a 7-1 decision to the Titans, who eventually went on to win the 2004 National Title.
The Golden Gophers will be making their 28th overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament in the program’s history, and the 15th under John Anderson. Minnesota is 49-52 in NCAA Tournament play, including three National Championships in 1956, 1960 and 1964 under former head coach Dick Siebert.
Minnesota joined Michigan and Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament, marking the first time since 2000 that the Big Ten has sent three teams to the NCAA Tournament. In 2000, the Golden Gophers went to the NCAA Tournament along with Illinois and Penn State. This year, Michigan is playing in Vanderbilt’s regional and Ohio State is playing in Texas A&M’s regional.
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