UT Remains In Hunt For NCAA Tournament Spot As Regional Rankings Released
INDIANAPOLIS - The NCAA has unveiled its initial South Region baseball rankings, listing The University of Tampa at No. 6. The Spartans are among five Sunshine State Conference teams in the top 10.
UT is currently 27-13 overall with a 19-10 record in South Region play. The Spartans have nine remaining games versus regional competition, three of which come against current No. 9 Florida Southern College.
The University of West Florida is currently first in the regional standings, followed by Barry University. Nova Southeastern is No. 5 as Lynn University is No. 10.
Tampa has advanced to 11 consecutive NCAA South Regionals, including all 10 of head coach Joe Urso's tenure. Urso holds the longest stretch of consecutive NCAA appearances of any coach in UT baseball history.
Eight teams from the South Region will earn a trip to the NCAA Division II South Regional, which is scheduled for May 19-23. Champions from each of the three conferences in the region, the Sunshine State Conference (SSC), Gulf South Conference (GSC) and the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) will automatically qualify, and the five remaining at-large bids are awarded to the next highest ranked teams in the region. The top-ranked team is also in contention to host the regional.