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May 25, 2008

The NCAA Division I Baseball Committee announced 16 regional sites for the 62nd annual NCAA Division I Baseball Championship on Sunday evening, and for the seventh time in the past eight years, Rice's Reckling Park will serve as a site for the opening round of The Road to Omaha.

Competition for the Houston (Rice) Regional will get underway on Friday, May 30 with a pair of games. The other teams who will make up the bracket will be released tomorrow at 11:30 am on ESPN as part of the release of the 2008 NCAA Baseball tournament bracket. The NCAA will also announce the teams who have earned national seeds at that time.

The Owls will watch the bracket announcement at a Watch Party at the R Room at Rice Stadium. Head coach Wayne Graham and the members of the team will be available for interviews at that time.

Tickets for the Houston (Rice) Regional are on sale online at RiceOwls.com, or through the Rice Athletic Ticket Office at Rice Stadium. All-session passes are available for $55. Tickets for single games will go on sale on Thursday, May 31. Tickets can be purchased in person or over the phone by calling (713) 522-OWLS during normal business hours from Tuesday through Thursday.

The other 15 sites announced by the committee include Athens, Ga. (Georgia); Ann Arbor, Mich. (Michigan); Baton Rouge, La. (LSU); Cary, N.C. (North Carolina); College Station (Texas A&M.); Conway, S.C.. (Coastal Carolina); Coral Gables, Fla..( Miami); Fullerton, Calif. (Cal State Fullerton); Lincoln, Neb.. (Nebraska); Long Beach, Calif. (Long Beach State); Raleigh, N.C. (North Carolina State); Stanford, Calif, (Stanford); Stillwater, Okla. (Oklahoma State); Tallahassee, Fla. (Florida State); Tempe, Ariz. (Arizona State).

The regional hosted by North Carolina will be played at USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C.

By virtue of being awarded a regional, all 16 host institutions have also been selected to the 64-team field. Cal State Fullerton, Coastal Carolina, Florida State, Georgia, Long Beach State, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Oklahoma State, Rice, Stanford and Texas A&M have made the field as at-large selections. Arizona State (Pacific-10), LSU (Southeastern), Miami (Fla.) (Atlantic Coast) and Michigan (Big Ten) have clinched automatic berths by virtue of winning their conference tournament championship.

Cal State Fullerton or Long Beach State will win the Big West Conference automatic berth, while the other team will earn an at-large berth. Each regional field features four teams, playing a double-elimination format. All 16 regionals are scheduled to be conducted from Friday, June 30, to Monday, June 2.

This will be the 27th time that Florida State has hosted a regional. Miami (Fla.) is hosting for the 21st time. Arizona State and LSU are both hosting for the 18th time. Stanford (14th) and Oklahoma State (10th) are the only other institutions to host 10 or more times since the NCAA went to the regional format in 1975.

Cal St. Fullerton, Rice and Texas A&M are hosting a regional for the seventh time, while Michigan and Nebraska are hosting for the sixth time. This marks the first time for Michigan to host since 1986.

Georgia, Long Beach State and North Carolina are hosting for the fourth time. Coastal Carolina and North Carolina State are hosting only for the second time. Seven institutions (Arizona State, Coastal Carolina, Florida State, Long Beach State, North Carolina, Rice and Texas A&M) also hosted in 2007.

Thirty Division I conferences receive an automatic berth in the field of 64, along with 34 at-large selections. The 62nd Men's College World Series begins play Saturday, June 14, at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska.