Dawgs to Corvallis

Quick breakdown on the Corvallis regional.

Team	W-L	Conf Record	RPI	SOS
Oregon State	38-17	21-7	30	73
Creighton	44-14	24-7	26	127
Georgia	31-30	16-14	16	1
UALR	24-32	10-12	158	83

RPI and SOS are from Warren Nolan

Baseball is a very different game than basketball, but if you see a team seeded 12 in the basketball tournament carrying a 16/1 RPI/SOS facing a bracket that had no better than the 26th RPI and 73rd SOS, you'd probably pick that team to the second weekend, right?

Oregon is a regional host on the strength of their 2.96 ERA, which was third best in the Pac-10. Apparently, West Coach chicks dig pitchers. They stumbled down the stretch, ending on a five game losing streak in which their bats needed hats, only scoring 8 runs in those games.

Creighton didn't put up big numbers anywhere but in the W column. They won the regular season and the MVC tournament championships, ending the season on a 9-1 run. They will be looking to go home to Omaha, where they play some home games at TD Ameritrade Park, the new home of the College World Series.

Georgia didn't do anything particularly well this season. They faced top 50 competition in 45 of their 62 games, garnering 21 wins in those games. They didn't do well on the road, have a pedestrian 4.99 ERA and a less than pedestrian .277 BA. However, win or lose, Georgia won't be intimidated by the competition in Corvallis.

Arkansas-Little Rock is very happy to be here. They have the worse record of any team in the tournament, but got hot at the Sun Belt conference tournament to secure their first bid.

Hopefully, the tough schedule that put Georgia on the bubble will pay dividends in Corvallis.

TD

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Diamond Dawgs to Dance?

At this point, it comes down to how much the selection committee likes the schedule Georgia has played and how many of the already announced regional hosts win their conference bids today. Virginia, Florida, Rice and Cal State-Fullerton have already done so. With an RPI of 16 and an SOS of 1 (acording to Warren Nolan), the Dawgs seem to be in good shape. If they make it, their 31-30 record won't be the worse, as Alcorn State is several games under .500. Hell, Illinois won the Big 10 at 26-24. So much for uniform start dates.

Much like men's hoops, The Dawgs are bubbly going into selection day. The SEC locks are Vandy, Florida, South Carolina, and Arkansas. Alabama and Mississippi State are on the bubble with Georgia. LSU didn't make the conference tournament, so they are a very special case.

Team	W-L	Conf Record	RPI	SOS
Georgia	31-30	16-14	16	1
Miss St	34-23	14-16	23	22
Alabama	33-26	14-16	36	18
LSU*	36-20	13-17	23	32

* I included LSU because the selection committee could take them; there is no requirement they make the conference tourney to play in the NCAA tournament. I just don't think they will select them.

By my view, they select Georgia and Mississippi State. If they go one more, I think it is LSU, however, 'Bama did go 2-1 against the Tigers. That is why I think the stay out of the mess and leave both teams at home. Either that or take all eight. Obviously, I don't know.

With regional sites announced, the NCAA's penchant for not asking teams to travel too far and no likely conference vs. conference match-ups at the regional sites, we can make some educated guesses about where Georgia will play if they make the tournament. Atlanta and Clemson are the most likely spots, but the Dawgs could be sent to Chapel Hill or Tallahassee, too. A best case scenario would be at Clemson as a 2 seed with Charlotte and Sacred Heart as the third and fourth teams. A worse case would be in Chapel Hill as a three seed with East Carolina as the two seed.

The remaining at-large teams, top-eight national seeds, first-round regional pairings and site assignments will be announced at 12:30, Monday, May 30 on ESPN.

TD

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Omaha Bound!

Rosenblatt Stadium - Omaha, Nebraska

I won't say I called it exactly, but I strongly hinted at this back in February. More on today's domination later. Paul was at the game, so I'm sure he'll have a full report soon. Awesome, awesome performance.

Quinton

Westerdawg Update: Just got in. Best college baseball "vibe" I've witnessed in person. My favorite moment...in the 7th inning Georgia was up huge. The team was enraged by the NC State pitcher hitting Lyle Allen after Joey Lewis' home run in the 6th inning. Opening batter in the 7th is Peisel who homers for Georgia to make the lead 13-3. After a single by Olson, Gordon Beckham comes to the plate for what we assume is his last at bat in Foley Field.

The crowd rises for a classic Georgia salute and begins chanting "Let's go Gordo." Beckham steps out of the box to enjoy the moment every so briefly, and then launches a rocket ship home run. The crowd drops into pandemonium with a curtain call for Beckham. Now THAT is how you end your career.

See Also:

-- UGA Advances to College World Series - AJC
-- There's no place like Nebraska - ABH
-- A regular destination - ABH
-- Beckham Confirms Legacy - ABH
-- Perno adds to legacy - AJC
-- AJC Photos - AJC
-- DawgPost Photos (free) - DawgPost
-- No Pity for Pack - DawgPost
-- Omaha Bound - UGAsports
-- UGA College World Series 2008 Merchandise - GSB

PWD

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