3 Florida Gators
Gainesville, Florida
Won Gainesville Regional (3-1), at-large bid from SEC
2017 record: 21-9, 45-17 (first in SEC East)
Head coach: Kevin O’Sullivan (Virginia, 1991)
Record at school: 441-206 (10 years)
Overall record: same
Assistant coaches: Craig Bell, Brad Weitzel, Lars Davis
Team offense: .264 BA, 346 R, 47 HR, .385 SLG%, .362 OBP%, 78-103 SB
Team pitching: 3.60 ERA, 560.1 IP, 548 H, 193 BB, 533 K
Top hitters: Nelson Maldonado (.320/6/31), Ryan Larson (.318/5/23), Christian Hicks (.289/4/25), Jonathan India (.277/6/32/10-10 SB), JJ Schwarz (.274/10/50), Dalton Guthrie (.268/4/20/10-15 SB), Deacon Liput (.215/1/27/12-18 SB)
Top pitchers: Michael Byrne (3-4, 1.55, 16 SV, 63.2 IP, 49 H, 12 BB, 74 K), Alex Faedo (7-2, 2.70, 103.1 IP, 85 H, 34 BB, 123 K), Brady Singer (7-5, 3.48, 106 IP, 103 H, 29 BB, 97 K), Jackson Kowar (12-0, 3.72, 96.2 IP, 99 H, 39 BB, 68 K)
Last NCAA appearance: 2016 (3-0 at Gainesville Regional, 2-1 at Gainesville Super Regional, 0-2 at College World Series)
Notes: Florida is looking to reach the College World Series for the 11th time and for the third straight year and sixth time in the past eight years. The Gators are looking for their first national title after a pair of second-place finishes. Florida is 27-9 at home this season. Senior outfielder Ryan Larson was unavailable for the Gainesville Regional after suffering a head injury after being hit by a pitch during the SEC Tournament. He is expected to be available in the super regional. The Gators were blanked 16-0 by Arkansas in the semifinals of the SEC tourney, their worst loss of the season. UF is in the NCAA Tournament for the 10th consecutive season, a program record. Pitcher Alex Faedo is a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award. Michael Byrne has set a program record with 16 saves.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Won Winston-Salem Regional (3-0), at-large bid from ACC
2017 record: 19-11, 42-18
Head coach: Tom Walter (Georgetown 1991)
Record at school: 238-216 (8 years)
Overall record: 666-547 (21 years)
Assistant coaches: Bill Cilento, Matt Hobbs, Joey Hammond
Team offense: .311 BA, 472 R, 100 HR, .513 SLG%, .405 OBP%, 44-60 SB
Team pitching: 4.16 ERA, 534.2 IP, 502 H, 230 BB, 527 K
Top hitters: Stuart Fairchild (.359/17/67/20-25 SB), Jake Mueller (.358/2/34), Jonathan Pryor (.347/4/35), Ben Breazeale (.342/8/47), Johnny Aiello (.329/18/51), Gavin Sheets (.322/20/81), Bruce Steel (.272/13/38)
Top pitchers: Griffin Roberts (2-4, 8 SV, 2.15 ERA, 50.1 IP, 29 H, 29 BB, 75 K),
Connor Johnstone (8-0, 3.36 ERA, 88.1 IP, 82 H, 32 BB, 63 K), Parker Dunshee (9-1, 4.14 ERA, 95.2 IP, 95 H, 27 BB, 103 K), Donnie Sellers (3-5, 4.81 ERA, 78.2 IP, 79 H, 28 BB, 57 K)
Last NCAA appearance: 2016 (1-2 at College Station Regional)
Notes: Wake Forest advanced to its second Super Regional and first since 1999. The Demon Deacons have been to the College World Series twice. WFU was runner-up in 1949 and national champion in 1955. The Demon Deacons made their first NCAA regional appearance since 2007 a year ago and built on by earning the 3 seed in the ACC tournament after being picked preseason to finish 5th in the Atlantic Division. The 19 ACC wins set a school record as did its eight series wins. WFU has been ranked nationally in the Top 25 since early April for the first time in at least a decade reaching as high as No. 12. The Demon Deacons boast one of the most powerful offenses in the country as their 100 homers lead the nation and .513 slugging percentage ranks fifth. They have five batters who have hit double digit in home runs including the top two in the ACC (Gavin Sheets, 20; Johnny Aiello 18). Sheets’ 81 RBI are third in the country. First Team All-ACC selection and Dick Howser Award semifinalist Stuart Fairchild ranks in the Top 5 in the ACC in runs, total bases and RBI and is recognized as one of the best outfielders in the country. Joining Fairchild as First Team All-ACC selections were Sheets (1B) and Ben Breazeale (C). Breazeale was named as a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award. Wake is a combined 23-6 in starts this year by Dunshee and Johnstone. Power can also be used to describe the Deac’s pitching staff with Dunshee as the school’s leader in strikeouts and closer Griffin Roberts is averaging 13.5 K/9 and only allowing batters to hit .164.