On Monday, the NCAA announced the 64 collegiate baseball teams to earn the honor to be a part of the Division I national tournament, which will begin Friday at noon when the Missouri Tigers take on the Ole Miss Rebels. In preview of the regional tournaments that will be held this weekend, throughout the week our resident college baseball fanatic Rosenblogger will examine each individual regional:

Athens Regional

1. Georgia Bulldogs (35-21) vs 4. Lipscomb Bison (32-28)
2. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (39-19) vs 3. Louisville Cardinals (41-19)

**Winner to take on champion of Raleigh Regional.**

After winning a thrilling extra inning game to capture the Atlantic Sun tournament title and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, Lipscomb University will be welcomed to regional play by SEC regular season champion Georgia. The Bulldogs were given the number eight national seed meaning they will be able to host all the way to the World Series in Omaha.

Georgia stumbled down the stretch, losing four of its last five games, including an 0-2 showing at last week’s SEC tournament. Expect the Bulldogs to be rested and ready to prove they are worthy of their national seed. Led by star shortstop Gordon Beckham (.394, 23 HR, 57 RBI), the Bulldogs will be too much for Lipscomb who will struggle to compete in their first trip to the big dance.

This regional’s other matchup features an intriguing contest between ACC power Georgia Tech and Louisville, who made their first trip to Omaha last season. The Big East champion Cardinals are led by sophomore slugger Chris Dominguez, who enters the regional having belted 20 home runs with 74 RBI’s. Left-hander Justin Marks (9-1, 2.21 ERA) will likely get the ball in the opener for the Cards.

The Yellow Jackets are used to playing regionals in their own ballpark, however, they will likely have a large contingent of fans make the short trip over to Athens. This Georgia Tech team does not possess the talent most Tech teams have had in recent years. However, they still finished with a 39-19 record and are certainly capable of being a dangerous team in the postseason. They boast a balanced lineup, including six different batters who knocked at least 8 home runs.

The Tech pitching staff is very average. Deck McGuire (8-1, 3.41 ERA) will give them quality innings, but they don’t feature the dominant type arms needed to shutdown a good offense like Louisville’s. I think the Louisville Cardinals will put a lot of pressure on the Jackets early and often, and they will be able to do enough to win.

Georgia is a team that comes stumbling into the regional, but this is their regional to lose. They have three solid starters in Trevor Holder (7-4, 4.48 ERA), Steven Dodson (5-3, 3.80 ERA), and Nathan Moreau (3-2, 5.06 ERA), who will keep them in ballgames. Their offense is too good for anyone in this regional to stop, and don’t forget about filthy closer Joshua Fields (16 SV, 1.52 ERA, 53 K in only 29.2 IP), who is as tough to hit as anyone in college baseball.

Georgia is the best team in this regional, and the great home field advantage of Foley Field will be too much for their opponents.

Rosenblogger

Also, check out our other regional previews: Ann Arbor, Baton Rouge, Cary, College Station, Conway, Coral Gables, Fullerton, Houston, Lincoln, Long Beach, Palo Alto, Raleigh, Stillwater, Tallahassee, Tempe

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