HOUSTON, TEXAS (May 25, 2009) The NCAA Division I Baseball Committee announced 16 regional sites for the 63rd annual NCAA Division I Baseball Championship on Sunday evening, and for the eighth time in the past nine years, Rice's Reckling Park will serve as a site for the opening round of The Road to Omaha. As a host site for the a 2009 regional, the Owls have qualified for their 15th-consecutive NCAA Baseball Championship by virtue of their 8-6 win over Southern Miss Sunday afternoon in the C-USA Championship game.
Competition for the Houston (Rice) Regional will get underway on Friday, May 29 with a pair of games. The list of competing teams will be released on Monday 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.
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 28. Tickets can be purchased in person or over the phone by calling (713) 522-OWLS during normal business hours from Tuesday through Thursday.
The 16 regional sites, with host institutions and records are as follows: Arizona State (43-12 through Saturday, May 23), Tempe, Ariz.; UC Irvine (42-13 through Saturday, May 23), Irvine, Calif.; Cal State Fullerton (41-14 through Saturday, May 23), Fullerton, Calif.; Clemson (40-19), Clemson, S.C.; East Carolina (42-17), Greenville, N.C.; Florida (39-20), Gainesville, Fla.; Florida St. (42-15 through Saturday, May 23), Tallahassee, Fla.; Georgia Tech (35-17-1), Atlanta; LSU (45-16 through Saturday, May 23), Baton Rouge, La.; Louisville (44-15), Louisville, Ky.; Mississippi (40-17), Oxford, Miss.; North Carolina (42-16), Chapel Hill, N.C.; Oklahoma (41-18), Norman, Okla.; Rice (39-15), Houston; Texas (40-13-1 through Saturday, May 23), Austin, Texas; TCU (36-16), Fort Worth, Texas.
By virtue of being awarded a regional, all 16 host institutions have also been selected to the 64-team field. Cal State Fullerton, Clemson, East Carolina, Florida, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma and TCU have made the field as at-large selections.
Arizona State (Pacific-10), UC Irvine (Big West), Florida St. (Atlantic Coast), Louisville (Big East), LSU (SEC), Rice (Conference USA), Texas (Big XII) have clinched automatic berths by virtue of winning their conference tournament championships.
Each regional field features four teams, playing a double-elimination format. All 16 regionals are scheduled to be conducted from Friday, May 29, to Monday, June 1. Florida State is hosting for record 28th time, while this will be the 19th time that Arizona State and LSU have hosted a regional. Clemson (12th) is the only other institution to host 10 or more times since the NCAA went to the regional format in 1975.
Georgia Tech is hosting for the ninth time, while Cal St. Fullerton, Florida and Rice are hosting a regional for the eighth time. Mississippi and North Carolina are hosting for the fifth time.
Oklahoma is the host for the fourth time and East Carolina for the third time. Hosting for the first time are UC Irvine, Louisville and TCU. Six institutions (Arizona State, Cal State Fullerton, Florida State, LSU, North Carolina and Rice) also hosted in 2008.
Thirty Division I conferences receive an automatic berth in the field of 64, along with 34 at-large selections. The 63rd Men's College World Series begins play Saturday, June 13, at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska.
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