KINGSVILLE, Texas – The No. 27 Texas A&M-Kingsville baseball program will make its first journey to Cary, N.C., this week to the USA Baseball National Training Complex to compete in the NCAA Division-II College World Series after securing its first South Central Regional title last week.

The Javelinas enter the CWS as the sixth-seeded team and will open play against No. 22/14 UC San Diego on Sunday, May 27, with first pitch scheduled for 2 p.m. CT.

The Hogs will arrive at the USA Baseball NTC as the South Central Region champions after working their way back from the elimination bracket by rattling off three straight wins to clinch the crown.

TAMUK bested second-seeded Colorado Mesa to open the regional with a 13-10 victory on Thursday, May 17, thanks in large part to a seven-run third inning on the heels of a three-run shot from senior Dallas Stefano (Cypress, Texas).

The Javelinas lost their second game of the regional to fourth-seeded Colorado School of Mines after the Orediggers pieced together five runs in the third inning to erase a four-run deficit and won the contest in extras at 9-7.

TAMUK was due for a bit of extra-inning magic of its own after freshman Tyler Flores (San Antonio, Texas) went toe-to-toe with Ryan Larison of West Texas A&M in the first elimination game and took a 1-1 score through the ninth inning.

Flores took the no-decision as head coach Jason Gonzales opted for senior Seth Hubert (Riviera, Texas) in the 10th, who kept the Buffs scoreless, while Larison was bounced with two outs in the bottom half of the frame before senior Austin Ingraham (Fort Worth, Texas) swiped second and eventually scored on back-to-back miscues from WT.

The Blue and Gold enacted their revenge in the second matchup against CSM in convincing fashion after storming out to a 4-0 lead by the top of the second and riding the arm of senior Kyle Craft (Victoria, Texas), who hurled a complete-game gem to secure TAMUK's spot in Sunday's finale.

The Hogs took on CMU for a second time to close the regional tournament and opened the contest with a grand slam in the bottom of the first, courtesy of Stefano, and rode the wave all the way to Cary as the Javelinas kept the Mavericks at bay with a 12-5 final.

Following the regionals, TAMUK raised its team average to .303 with four starters hitting over .300 and another two hitting over .275. Junior Manny Loredo (McAllen, Texas) leads the way with a .353 mark and is closely followed by senior Levi Zents (Fort Worth, Texas) at .351 and Stefano at .349, while redshirt-sophomore Kohl Ullman (Houston, Texas) rounds out the quartet with a .337 mark.

Zents added another honor to his already-teeming trophy case, taking home his third First-Team All-Region award of the 2018 campaign after the American Baseball Coaches Association released its All-Region teams earlier this week. Zents adds the accolade from the ABCA to his awards from the D2CCA and the NCBWA.

On the mound, the Hogs have compiled a 4.24 ERA through 56 contests on 450 innings pitched with Craft leading the way for the starters with a 2.84 ERA in 11 appearances behind a 6-1 mark and 34 strikeouts. Right behind him is Flores who has a 3.20 ERA through 15 appearances and a 6-1 mark as well alongside 71 punchouts.

Junior Joshua Valdez (Kyle, Texas) has turned into the first arm out of the bullpen for the Javelinas as he has six saves on the year in his name with a 3.34 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 32.1 innings pitched. He made three appearances in the regional for the Blue and Gold, taking a save in the first game against CMU before bridging the sixth and eighth innings of the regional championship.

[22/14] UC SAN DIEGO TRITONS | 42-15, 30-14 CCAA | WEST REGION

The Tritons are in the midst of a 12-game winning streak after sweeping their way through the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament and the NCAA West Regional. With the win in the regional, UCSD is the lone 2017 Division-II College World Series participant to make a return trip to the 2018 version of the tournament.
UC San Diego's 2017 run came to a close on championship Sunday with a loss to West Chester on June 4.

The Tritons returned most of the 2017 team for the 2018 season and are currently led by Zander Clarke's .394, nearly 50 points higher than the next batter as Blake Baumgartner sits second with a .346 average. Seven total hitters are currently above the .300 mark while UCSD is hitting .312 as a team.

Clarke also paces the power attack for the Tritons with 18 home runs, ahead of Alex Eliopulos' 14.

The pitching staff will be anchored on the front end by Preston Mott's 8-1 mark on 14 starts to go with a 2.86 ERA in 78.2 innings pitched and 84 strikeouts. Meanwhile, the bullpen features one of the nation's most dominant closers as Cameron Kurz owns a 0.88 ERA across 30.2 innings pitched in 20 relief appearances for a 5-1 mark with nine saves and 54 strikeouts.

As a team, the Tritons have a 3.89 ERA with 495 strikeouts.

[8/11] COLUMBUS STATE COUGARS | 45-13, 20-9 PBC | SOUTHEAST REGION

The Cougars were crowned Southeast Region champs after suffering a defeat at the hands of Belmont Abbey and working their way through three elimination games, much like the Javelinas. Columbus State first bested North Greenville before taking back-to-back wins over Belmont Abbey in the championship to claim the title.
CSU fell just short in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament before taking the fourth seed in the regional bracket.

In the box, the Cougars are hitting .295 as a team with Austin Pharr and Robert Brooks both eclipsing the .340 mark at .345 and .342, respectively. What CSU lacks in contact it makes up for in raw power as a combined 86 home runs punctuate the 2018 season for the Cougars with five members hitting over 10 home runs on the year.

Pharr paces the power with 17 round-trippers, followed closely by Frank Wager at 15, while Brooks, Mason McClellan and Grant Berry all have 10.

On the mound, Kolton Ingram has shouldered the majority of the work with 17 starts en route to a 12-3 record and leads all starters with a 2.23 ERA through 121.1 innings pitched alongside 135 strikeouts. The remainder of the rotation is rounded out by Tyler Cadenhead's 9-1 mark and 3.33 ERA, with Perez Knowles and T.J. Clark adding identical 7-3 records.

The Cougars will feature plenty of bullpen depth with four pitchers making at least 13 relief appearances as Jalen Latta's 22 appearances is the most on the team to go with his 3.53 ERA.

As a team, CSU owns a 3.59 ERA with 531 strikeouts.

[24/24] MERCYHURST LAKERS | 36-13, 20-8 PSAC | ATLANTIC REGION

The Lakers couldn't make a dent in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Tournament but still battled their way through the Atlantic Region as the fifth seed by knocking off top-seeded West Chester before cruising to the crown.

A .293 team batting average highlights the Mercyhurst offense with five starters hitting over .300 on the year. Drew Delsignore and Daniel Elliott have matching .345 averages through 49 starts as Elliot paces the attack with 10 home runs.

The pitching staff features a top-heavy look of Chris Vallimont, Tyler Garbee and Russell Lamovec combining for a 20-5 record following 32 starts. Vallimont leads the way with a 1.94 ERA on 74.1 innings pitched with 136 strikeouts.

First from the pen will likely be Nicholas McRand whose 18 relief appearances and 3.20 ERA has been the most consistent for Mercyhurst in 2018. As a team, the Lakers feature a 3.70 ERA and 469 strikeouts.

[3/3] FLORIDA SOUTHERN MOCCASINS | 42-9-1, 22-8 SSC | SOUTH REGION

Drawing the top seed in the CWS field, Florida Southern took the scenic route to Cary through no fault of its own. The South Regional ended up delayed by a day before the Mocs outlasted perennial contender Tampa in the regional championship.

FSC drew the top seed and hosting rights for the South Regional, besting Nova Southeastern once and Tampa twice in the bracket en route to its 21st regional championship.

At the plate, Florida Southern is hitting .313 as a team with Logan Browning pulling two-way duties behind a .442 average at the plate and a 9-2 record on the bump. Browning leads a total of seven Mocs hitting over .300 with Jacob Teter, Omar Villaman and Dylan Costa all above .340 at .346, .342 and .340, respectively.

The Mocs feature a unique look on the mound with J.T. Hintzen owning a 13-0 record despite only one start. Hintzen has made 28 relief appearances with a 2.07 ERA in 82.2 innings pitched alongside 100 strikeouts, while Browning leads the team with 105 strikeouts in 101.1 innings pitched.

As a team, FSC owns a 4.45 ERA with 462 punchouts.

[NR/NR] SOUTHERN INDIANA SCREAMING EAGLES | 36-21, 15-9 GLVC | MIDWEST REGION

The Screaming Eagles lost out in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament to the University of Indianapolis but enacted their revenge in the Midwest Regional by sending U-Indy to the elimination bracket and besting Ohio Dominican in the regional championship to earn a spot in the CWS.

Southern Indiana will feature a .319 team batting average with five players above the .300 mark. Drake McNamara is up front with a .390 average while starting all 57 games and leads the team with 17 home runs.

A 4.59 team ERA outlines the pitching staff with Dalton Lewis owning  a 2.25 ERA through 19 relief appearances, while Kyle Griffin anchors the rotation with a 3.50 ERA and a 7-3 record with 97 strikeouts.

No other USI hurler features an ERA under 4.00 as Austin Krizan and Jacob Bowles are the closest at 4.11 and 4.12, respectively.

[23/NR] SOUTHERN NEW HAMPSHIRE PENMEN | 39-15, 19-6 NE10 | EAST REGION

The Penmen worked their way out of the Northeast-10 Tournament with a loss against Merrimack, but came back as the fourth seed in the East Regional and bested top-seeded New Haven before cruising to the regional title over St. Thomas Aquinas.

SNHU is hitting only .289 as a team but has Tom Blandini leading the offense with a .341 mark as one of five hitting over .300. Blandini has blazed a trail around the base paths with 10 triples on the year to only one home run, and owns 15 stolen bases as one of four to reach that mark.

John Stanton leads with 19 stolen bases on a .287 average with five home runs, while Caleb Potter has 11 round-trippers to his name as the top power hitter.

What the Penmen lack at the plate they make up for on the mound with a 3.00 team ERA across a combined 477.2 innings pitched. Three starters come in under the 4.00 ERA-mark with Andrew Lalonde, Mitchell Powers and Shane McDonald owning a 2.48, 2.59 and 3.96 ERA, respectively. Combined, the three are 18-8 on the year across 36 starts as McDonald leads the way with 109 strikeouts.

Out of the pen first will be Wesley Tobin as his 1.20 ERA through 30 innings pitched has resulted in a 3-1 record, while Jake Walkinshaw pulls primary closer duties with three saves and a 6-0 record on a 1.32 ERA.

Brandon Welch and Hayden Manning are the other pitchers below a 2.00 ERA at 1.45 and 1.15, respectively.

[NR/RV] AUGUSTANA VIKINGS | 48-9, 26-8 NSIC | CENTRAL REGION

Rounding out the field in Cary is Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Tournament Champion Augustana as the Vikings worked out of the Central Regional as the fifth seed by moving past top-seeded Southern Arkansas in the regional final.

Augie will feature a .310 average at the plate as Riley Johnson paces the attack with a .385 after starting all 57 games, adding 33 stolen bases as the Vikings have an insurmountable 162 stolen bases as a team. Michael Svozil has swiped the most bases at 38, while Sam Baier has stolen 28 to round out the trio.

The pitching staff will be the toughest at the NTC as the Vikings have a combined 2.88 team ERA through 459.2 innings pitched. Zach Reeg serves as the go-to closer with a 0.99 ERA on 27.1 innings pitched across 20 relief appearances en route to a 4-1 record and four saves.

Jacob Blank and Tyler Mitzel anchor the rotation with a combined 18-0 record through 23 starts as Blank owns a 1.98 ERA to Mitzel's 2.10.

Game one of the Division-II College World Series is scheduled for Saturday, May 26, while the Hogs will square off with the Tritons on Sunday, May 27, with first pitch at 2 p.m. CT.

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