Florida won the SEC Baseball Tournament for the seventh time in school history after the Gators defeated Vanderbilt, 7-3, in last week’s championship game last Sunday (May 24) in Hoover.
Florida’s path to the championship included wins over LSU, Arkansas and Auburn. The Gators lost their opening game to the Razorbacks, 7-6, but responded with four straight wins.
As a result, Florida received one of eight national seeds in the NCAA Tournament. The Gators play Florida A&M in the opening round of the Gainesville Regional.
LSU also received one of the eight overall national seeds. If the Tigers and Gators win their regional tournaments, both teams will host a Super Region-al. The Tigers open up the NCAA Tournament against Lehigh.
Defending national champion Vanderbilt and Texas A&M are also hosting regionals.
The Commodores play Lipscomb, while the Aggies open up with Texas Southern.
Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Auburn also made the NCAA Tournament. The Rebels made the College World Series a year ago, but their road back to Omaha will be much more difficult this season. Ole Miss received a No. 2 seed in UCLA’s regional, and the Bruins are the top overall seed in the tournament. Ole Miss opens up the tournament against Maryland.
Arkansas received a No. 2 seed in Oklahoma State’s regional. The Razorbacks play Oral Roberts in their first game. Arkansas has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the past 14 seasons.
Auburn is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2010. The Tigers are the No. 3 seed in the Tallahassee Regional, where they face College of Charleston in their opening game.
Regional predictions
LSU, Florida, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt and Arkansas all advance to the Super Regionals. Ole Miss and Auburn both go 1-2 in their respective regionals.
SEC softball
Five SEC teams made the College World Series in softball, including Florida, Tennessee, Auburn, LSU and Alabama. The top half of the bracket features all SEC teams. Florida takes on Tennessee, while Auburn plays LSU. Alabama plays Michigan in its opening game. The Gators are the favorite to win the title, but all eight teams are relatively close.
An Auburn/Alabama matchup is unlikely unless both teams advance deep into the double elimination tournament.
