Down to the CWS wire in Omaha.
OMAHA, Neb. — The 2011 College World Series has narrowed to just two teams with the winner declared as early as today or tomorrow. This article, written too early to discuss Monday’s outcome, would see Monday’s winner declared college world champion tonight with a win. However, if Monday’s loser wins today, then the deciding third game will be played on Wednesday.
SEC Dominance
Both schools play in the SEC, a conference that is as dominate in baseball as it is in football. Still, South Carolina and Florida had to hold off Virginia and Vanderbilt respectively to advance to the championship, with both schools 3-0 in this year’s series. The Gamecocks are the defending CWS champion while Florida was the pre-season favorite to win it all. Expect this series to take three games to decide a winner.
Last year was the first time the Gamecocks (53-14) won the CWS, having appeared three times previously and lost. Florida (53-17) has yet to win a CWS, losing to Texas in two games in 2005. This will be the third consecutive year that an SEC will win the national title with LSU winning in 2009 followed by the Gamecocks in 2010.
Although both schools play in the same conference, they met for a three-game series in late March, with the Gamecocks winning the first and third games. These schools did not face off in the NCAA tournament and, of course, haven’t faced each other yet in the CWS.
Team Comparisons
How well do these two teams stack up? When it comes to ERA, the Gamecocks are fifth in the nation, averaging 2.49 runs per game while Florida comes in at 2.97. When it comes to batting, the Gators have the upper hand with team average of .309 compared to South Carolina at .295. With a short series, those numbers may be relatively inconsequential, with the winner likely being the team that can figure out a way of outlasting the other.
Resources
ESPN; Florida Slightly Favored in CWS Final; Jeff Sackmann; June 27, 2011
Omaha World-Herald; Tournament Central: 2011 College World Series; Tom Shatel; June 27, 2011
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