There are only three weeks until the NCAA Division I baseball selection show. Between now and then, some teams will go on and off the bubble, while others battle for seeding and the right to host regionals and Super Regionals.
Who is hitting their stride as Omaha comes into focus?
Seminoles and Razorbacks Among Teams Trending Up
The college baseball postseason is quickly approaching. There are only two more weekends in the regular season, followed by conference tournaments, and concluding with the NCAA Division I selection show at Noon on Monday, May 26.
35 at-large teams will join 29 conference champions on the road to Omaha. Several teams are peaking as the playoffs approach. Here is a breakdown of a few of them.
Arkansas (40-9, 17-7 SEC)
Any number of SEC teams could slide onto this list, including sixth-ranked Arkansas, which owns an SEC-best six-game win streak right now. The Bulldogs took 2-of-3 from the Razorbacks a few weeks ago.
In fact, Arkansas lost three straight conference series — to Georgia, Texas A&M, and Florida — for the first time since 2016.
So why is coach Dave Van Horn’s squad on this list? Simple. Texas. The Razorbacks, now No. 7 in the country, swept the top-ranked Longhorns in Fayetteville this past weekend, outscoring the visitors 28-9. It was the first time Texas has been swept all season.
For Arkansas, it was the school’s first weekend series sweep of the Longhorns’ history and the first sweep of the nation’s top-ranked team in 24 years. The Razorbacks also improved to 30-3 at Baum-Walker Stadium.
A number of clutch players stepped up for Arkansas all weekend. Cam Kozeal homered and drove in three runs, Carson Boles homered and drove in two runs, and Wehiwa Aloy doubled and drove in two runs in a 9-0 series opening victory. Zach Root allowed just two hits in eight innings while striking out 11 to improve to 6-3.
Wehiwa’s brother, Kuhio, doubled and drove in three runs while Brent Iredale homered in the Razorbacks’ 6-1 Game 2 win. Gage Wood, Gabe Gaeckle, and Aidan Jimenez combined to allow one run on five hits while striking out 15.
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Reese Robinnett hit his first two home runs of the season and drove in six. Wehiwa Aloy had three hits, and Kuhio Aloy homered and drove in two as Arkansas closed out the sweep with five home runs and prevailed in a 13-8 slugfest. Dylan Carter tosses 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, allowing just one hit, for the win.
Arkansas is tied for fourth in the nation with 102 home runs, and both Aloy brothers should garner All-American consideration. Wehiwa leads the team with a .376 batting average, 16 doubles, and 17 homers, while Kuhio is batting .359 with a team-leading 65 RBIs.
The Razorbacks are now 17-7 in the SEC, two games behind the Longhorns. Arkansas closes at No. 3 LSU this weekend and at home versus 15th-ranked Tennessee.
Florida State Seminoles (33-10, 14-7 ACC)
The second-ranked Seminoles rebounded from losing 2-of-3 at Louisville last weekend by taking 2-of-3 from Clemson in a big three-game set in Tallahassee this past weekend. The team has won eight of its past 11 games and now sits percentage points ahead of N.C. State is at the top of the ACC standings.
North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Miami, Clemson, and Duke all sit within 1.5 games, so Florida State will be properly motivated the rest of the way.
The 1-2 punch of Alex Lodise (.430, 16 HR, 57 RBIs) and Max Williams (.325, 17, 41) at the plate is meshing well with the 1-2 punch of Joey Volini (8-2, 2.74 ERA, 82 K’s) and Jamie Arnold (5-1, 2.29, 73) on the mound. Lodise is currently tied for sixth in the nation in batting, while the Seminoles are seventh in the country with a .322 team batting average.
Florida State closes its regular season slate at home against No. 4 North Carolina that could determine the regular season ACC champion.
Oregon Ducks (33-13,16-8 Big Ten)
The fifth-ranked Ducks have won six of seven. They swept four games at home against the in-state and fellow Top 10 Oregon State Beavers and followed that by winning the final two games this past weekend in East Lansing against Michigan State.
Outfielder Mason Neville leads the country with 23 home runs, and he has 50 RBIs as well. Teammate Jacob Walsh has 16 homers and 51 RBIs, while Grayson Grinsell leads the team with seven wins while sporting a 2.77 ERA on the mound.
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Oregon is tied for third in the Big Ten with fellow conference debutant USC, a half-game behind UCLA and 3.5 games behind conference leader Iowa. The Ducks host Washington this weekend before traveling to Iowa City to face the Hawkeyes in their final three games of the regular season.
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