STARKVILLE — The Mississippi State baseball team is in the midst of a historical season.
On Monday, the Bulldogs added to the growing list of accomplishments.
MSU was announced as the No. 6 national seed for the NCAA tournament, the first in school history.
“I think it’s a great honor,” MSU coach John Cohen said. “But like I’ve said many times, we won the Southeastern Conference, that’s a tremendous honor, but you’ve got about two minutes to take that in. Now we’ve got to get ready to play against a very, very good field.”
The No. 4 Bulldogs learned Sunday that they would host their 13th regional and first since 2013. Joining top-seeded MSU (41-16-1) in the Starkville Regional are second-seeded California State University at Fullerton (35-21), third-seeded Louisiana Tech (40-18) and fourth-seeded Southeast Missouri State (39-19).
MSU and SEMO play 1:30 p.m. Friday, while Cal State Fullerton and Louisiana Tech follow at 6:30 p.m.
Winners from day one will play 6:30 p.m. Saturday, while the losers meet at 1:30 p.m. in an elimination game. Game five will be 1:30 p.m. Sunday, with game six following at 6:30 p.m. An if-necessary game is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Monday. All games in the Starkville Regional can be seen on ESPN3.
MSU, who is playing in its 35th NCAA tournament, became the first team to go from worst to outright champion in the Southeastern Conference. After finishing last season in last place with an 8-22 record, the Bulldogs went 21-9 and won nine conference series to win the SEC regular season title outright.
Focus
Cohen, who won SEC Coach of the Year, and MSU, who went 1-2 in last week’s SEC tournament, were practicing when the bracket was unveiled 11 a.m. Monday.
“We’re really focused on what we’re trying to do,” Cohen said. “It’s a good field, we’re excited about it, but we still have a lot to work to do before we open up on Friday.”
Cal State Fullerton won the Big West Conference title, while Southeast Missouri State won the Ohio Valley Conference regular season title and tournament title to earn an automatic bid. Louisiana Tech finished fifth in Conference USA.
The Starkville Regional is paired with the Lafayette (La.) Regional (Louisiana-Lafayette, Arizona, Sam Houston State and Princeton) for a super regional. If MSU advances, it will host the super regional.
‘This league’s really good’
The SEC got a record four national seeds and a record seven host sites. Florida earned the No. 1 overall national seed, Texas A&M the No. 4 national seed and LSU the No. 8 national seed. Ole Miss, Vanderbilt and South Carolina are also hosting regionals.
“This league’s really good,” Cohen said. “I think the strength of our league is notable and I think the committee did a great job noticing that.”
Cal State Fullerton is making its 38th NCAA tournament appearance and second trip to Starkville for a regional. Louisiana Tech is making its first NCAA tournament appearance since 1987. This is the third appearance for SEMO.
The Bulldogs came out of the 2013 Starkville Regional and beat Virginia in the Charlottesville Super Regional. MSU finished as the national runner-up to UCLA in the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, that season.
“If our kids are playing at their best, that’s all I want, that’s all I can ask for,” Cohen said. “Because I think we have a special group. We’ve got to find that, we’ve got to find what our best is.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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