The final month of the regular season finished with a flurry of activity. The 13th no-hitter in CBA history was thrown. Another program got frustrated and fired their athletic director and manager. Oh, and as always, the rankings got shuffled and we have yet another new #1 team going into the playoffs. Speaking of playoffs, some teams surged to make the postseason while others faded away and missed out. Ultimately, the regular season ended with seven teams vying for five positions. Extra games were played, bringing about the usual clamors from people to expand the playoffs. But when the dust settled, 16 teams found themselves with tickets to the postseason.
Washington State sophomore right fielder Craig Gilbert finished the season as the CBA batting champion, as he hit .412 this season in 48 games. Gilbert hit .343 in his freshman campaign.
Regional Recaps
New England Region
#8 UConn (39-21) won their 1st regional title on May 23rd and finished five games better than #19 Yale (35-27). The Huskies will host #13 Virginia in the opening round of the postseason. This is the first playoff appearance for UConn, whose program is only in its third year. Yale finished the season tied for the final four wildcard positions, but losses in Game 61 and 62 to Georgetown and Howard disqualified them from the playoffs.
Northeast Region
#22 Columbia and Fordham ended the season tied for the regional lead at 32-28. Fordham had taken four of six games during the regular season, but the only game that mattered was Game 61. On the road, the Columbia Lions pelted the Rams 11-1 to earn their 4th regional title. This is the Lions' 9th trip to the postseason in their program's 31-year history. It won't be an easy trip, though, as they are slated to start on the road against the new #1 team in the land. Columbia center fielder Wes Carpenter made headlines for the team on May 19th. The junior went 5-for-6 in a 12-6 win over Cornell.
Atlantic Region
#1 Virginia Tech (40-20) rode their powerhouse offense to the top of the rankings and the top of the Atlantic Region, winning the region by five games. The Hokies are tops in the CBA in runs scored (347) and batting average (.305). Only two hitters in their starting lineup are hitting under .300. Virginia Tech punched their ticket to the postseason on May 22nd and then clinched their 1st regional title three days later. Oddly enough, however, they were the victims of the no-hitter on May 3rd. On that day, Virginia senior Bobby Key threw the 13th no-no in CBA history on the road at Hokies Ballpark, leading the Cavaliers to a 5-0 victory. #13 Virginia played .500 ball in May and ended the season tied for a wildcard spot. In Game 61, the Cavaliers (36-25) squeaked by #15 Howard at Bison Ballpark with a 7-6 win, overcoming five errors. Howard went on to clinch a postseason berth with a 6-1 win at home against Yale in Game 62. The Bison (36-26) will begin the playoffs on the road against #2 Illinois State. #14 Georgetown also tied for the wildcard positions but was able to get to the playoffs for the 1st time in their program's five-year history by defeating Yale 5-1 on the road in Game 61. The Hoyas (36-25) will start the playoffs on the road against #5 LSU.
VMI sophomore first baseman Jake Longenecker went 5-for-5 on May 11th in an 8-2 win over Virginia Tech.
Penn president Daisaku Moriyama passed away on May 15th after a long illness. He was succeeded by his son Alexander Moriyama.
On May 26th, the final day of the regular season, Penn freshman right fielder Noe Mayoral thought it was a good idea to argue with the home plate umpire in his team's 5-1 loss to Lafayette. The argument occurred after a called third strike that was the final out of the 7th inning. Mayoral tapped the umpire's chest protector during the profanity-laced tirade, which according to press reports, could be heard by many parents and children seated near home plate. Ephraim issued a suspension as a result of the incident, citing that "Mayoral did not display the qualities of sportsmanship and good conduct expected of our players." Mayoral will miss the first two games of the 1902 season while serving the suspension.
Speaking of Lafayette, university president Nick Hooven had seen enough. With his team at 20-33 on the year, Hooven fired AD Bryan Dolan, who had been with the program since 1894. Manager Bill Moses, who had only been at the helm since last year, also got the ax. Moses' teams were 51-61 under his leadership. Newcomer Alex Rios, 56, was named the new athletic director while Ryan Summit, 54, was hired as the new skipper. Summit was the bench coach at Michigan State from 1888-1894 and managed the team from 1895-1898, finishing each season with a winning record. Summit managed his Spartan teams to a 152-90 record and two playoff appearances.
Southeast Region
#6 Mississippi (39-21) clinched their 1st Southeast Region title on May 23rd and finished the season five games ahead of their competition. The Rebels are the only team from the Southeast to make the playoffs as #16 Georgia Tech faded down the stretch. On May 15th, Alabama senior center fielder Justin Gonzales went 5-for-5 in an 8-1 win at Bradley. A week later, Georgia junior center fielder Josh Hugo went 5-for-5 in an 8-6 win at Butler.
Great Lakes Region
#2 Illinois State (40-20) punched their ticket to the postseason on May 19th but didn't clinch the regional title until the final day of the regular season. The Redbirds edged out #4 Minnesota (39-21) by one game for their 3rd Great Lakes Region title. Illinois State lost their final three games at home to Michigan State and are going to play Howard at home to start the playoffs. Minnesota has been on fire, posting a 15-4 record in May. The Golden Gophers have won 8 of their last 9 games. Minnesota begins the playoffs at home against #11 Northern Iowa.
Midwest Region
In another close regional race, #3 Drake (39-21) edged out #9 Kansas (38-22) by a game to earn their 1st regional crown. This is the second consecutive year the Bulldogs have made the playoffs and the third time in their program's eight-year history. The team lost to Tennessee last year in the quarterfinals. This year, the team will begin the postseason as home against #10 Stanford. The Jayhawks make the playoffs for the first time in three seasons. They will start the playoffs at home against #7 Michigan. #11 Northern Iowa (35-25) ended the year tied for the wildcard positions but was granted a postseason spot for having the best run differential of the five teams who were tied. The Panthers travel to #4 Minnesota to start the postseason.
Colorado State sophomore center fielder Frank Kristufek hit for the cycle as he went 4-for-5 in an 8-7 win against Iowa State.
Pacific Region
It took until the final day of the regular season, but #10 Stanford (37-23) edged out #12 Santa Clara (36-24) for their 3rd Pacific Region title. The Cardinal travel to Drake to start the playoffs. The Broncos make the postseason for the first time in their five-year history but will have to manage without catcher Josh Matthews. The junior backstop suffered a concussion on May 5th and was lost for the season. Matthews hit .299 in 42 games for Santa Clara. The Broncos will travel to Mississippi to start the playoffs.
Cal junior third baseman Andy Jones suffered an oblique strain on May 14th and was lost for the remainder of the season. Jones hit .311 this year. On May 19th, Cal sophomore second baseman Allen Capps had his 26-game hit streak end in a 4-3 loss to USC.
Southwest Region
#5 LSU (39-21) faded in May by going 9-10, but it was still good enough to win their 4th regional title. The Tigers finished six games ahead of both Tulane and Texas. It is the team's first playoff appearance in three years when they lost in the 1898 semi-finals to Northern Iowa. LSU will be at home to start the postseason against Georgetown.
Western Conference
#7 Michigan (37-23) won the Western Conference by four games for their 3rd conference title. The Wolverines are slated to start the playoffs on the road against Kansas.