College World Series

Stony Brook headed to Omaha

The 2012 College World Series has several teams of interest to Mizzou fans in the final Bracket of 8:

• Stony Brook, from New York, is one of two mid-major northern teams in the CWS this year.  It's always good to see that a team from somewhere besides the Sun Belt can make it to Omaha.
• UCLA will be SB's first opponent in Omaha.  
• Arizona is in the other part of Bracket 1.  Arizona's road to Omaha started with the Tucson Regional, where they "chopped" their way through the heat to beat both Mizzou and Louisville.
• Florida State is U of A's first opponent.  They may be the most dominant team in the field.
• Kent State is the other mid-major northern team in Omaha.  the last time Mizzou saw Kent State was in that same 2007 Regional in CoMo when the Tigers tangled with Louisville.
• Arkansas is Kent State's first opponent.  The Razorbacks took two games from the Tigers in May.  Arkansas is one of two SEC teams in the field.
• South Carolina is the second SEC team in Omaha this year.  They have won the past two College World Series.  The Gamecocks will be the first SEC team on Missouri's schedule in 2013, with a 3-game series at Taylor Stadium March 15-17.
• Florida will be South Carolina's first opponent.  It's interesting that all three of the SEC teams in the field of 8 are on the same side of on the bracket, which means there will not be an all-SEC finals.  And the two teams in the all-SEC finals last year were Florida and South Carolina, who will meet in the first round of this year's CWS.  Florida visits Taylor Stadium on April 19-21 next season.

♦ CWS Field Loaded With Compelling Storylines (Baseball America)

The big story is the pair of Northern teams crashing the party. No team from Ohio or further Northeast has been to Omaha since Maine in 1986, and this year's field will include two such teams. Kent State is the first team from the Buckeye State to reach Omaha since Ohio University in 1970, and the first Mid-American Conference team to make it since Eastern Michigan in 1976. Stony Brook is the first team from the Empire State to make it since St. John's in 1980.

The warmest winter and spring that many Northerners can remember certainly made a difference this year, allowing cold-weather teams to practice outside in February—a prospect that is ordinarily impossible. . .

♦ ISR-Based Probabilities for 2012 NCAA Tournament -- Before CWS (BoydsWorld.com)

♦ College World Series field is set (ESPN)

♦ Previewing the 2012 CWS field (NCAA.com)

This is the place to find the bracket, schedules and TV coverage