What you need to know about the NCAA Conway Regional hosted by Coastal Carolina
Coastal Carolina is hosting an NCAA regional for the fourth time in its 16 all-time regional appearances, and just the second time on campus.
The Chanticleers also hosted in 2007, 2008 and 2010, and they are hosting at Springs Brooks Stadium, which opened in 2015, for the first time.
“I’ve been coaching 33 years and worked a whole lifetime to get a stadium that’s one of the best stadiums in the country and to achieve some of the things we’ve achieved over the last 10 or 15 years here at Coastal Carolina,” CCU coach Gary Gilmore said. “To culminate it in this moment of actually getting a chance to host in this stadium, the whole thing we sold Tammy Brooks and the other people who bought in and donated so many things to help us put this ballpark together, this group earned the right to play here and I’m very proud of them.”
The Chants are the No. 15 national seed and top seed in the regional and are hosting second-seeded Connecticut, third-seeded Washington and fourth-seeded Long Island University Brooklyn.
“It’s really big for our program,” senior Seth Lancaster said. “The vibes are good, emotions are going to be high [Friday] and we’re just really excited.”
The opening game is UConn vs. Washington at noon Friday and the Chants open against LIU Brooklyn at 6 p.m. Games continue at noon and 5 p.m. Saturday, and noon and 6 p.m. Sunday, with a deciding game scheduled for 1 p.m. Monday if necessary.
▪ Coastal Carolina (42-17) won the Sun Belt Conference regular-season and tournament titles and features a potent offense. The Chants are third in the country in walks earned with 341, fifth in doubles with 138, sixth in runs scored and runs scored per game with 472/8.0, seventh in on-base percentage at .404, seventh in slugging percentage at .486, and ninth in home runs with 77.
Seth Lancaster and Kevin Woodall Jr. are tied for seventh in the nation with 19 homers each, and Zach Biermann was the MVP of the Sun Belt tournament with 12 RBI in four games.
▪ UConn (35-20-1) has already defeated Coastal this season, taking a 12-10 win on March 13 after racing out to an 11-1 lead in the third inning. The Huskies fell 4-3 to East Carolina - a regional host - in the American Athletic Conference title game after tying for third in the conference with a 14-10 record.
Lefthanded ace Mason Feole is 9-1 with a 2.50 ERA and .214 opponent batting average, and shortstop Anthony Prato is batting .327 with 74 hits, 40 runs scored and 18 stolen bases.
▪ Washington (30-23) was seeking its first Pac-12 title since 1998 and held a 5-3 lead over Stanford, the nation’s No. 2 overall seed, before The Cardinal scored three in the ninth inning of what amounted to the championship game Saturday to win. Washington took two of three from Stanford in the final regular season series.
Washington finished third in the Pac-12 with a 20-10 conference record. Outfielder Mason Cerrillo is batting .349, infielder A.J. Graffanino is batting .329 and Joe Wainhouse is batting .309 with 14 home runs. The Huskies have the lowest team ERA in the regional at 3.61.
▪ LIU Brooklyn (31-24) claimed the program’s first Northeast Conference championship with an 8-5 victory over Wagner and defeated top-seeded Bryant 13-4 in the semifinals after finishing third in the league with a 16-12 record.
The Blackbirds have won six consecutive games. Senior infielder Andrew Turner is batting .344 with 15 doubles and is the only Blackbird batting above .300. The team’s ERA of 4.70 is the highest in the regional.
“One thing you learn in this game is the teams that scare you the most are the teams that have mojo going for them and believe in themselves,” Gilmore said. “We’re going to have our hands full with them because I know they think they can win this thing and they should. They come in on a high note and we’re going to have to match their intensity.”
NCAA Conway Regional
Where: Springs Brooks Stadium, Conway
Game Times: Friday, noon and 6 p.m.; Saturday, noon and 5 p.m.; Sunday, noon and 6 p.m.; Monday, 1 p.m. (if necessary)
Live online stream: All games on ESPN3
Radio: WRNN FM 99.5
Tickets: From $10-$75, at the box office, www.goccusports.com/tickets, 843-347-8499
This story was originally published May 31, 2018 at 7:57 PM with the headline "What you need to know about the NCAA Conway Regional hosted by Coastal Carolina."