2011 Austin Regional

1. Texas Longhorns (7)

Austin, Texas

At-large bid from Big 12

2011 record: 19-8, 43-15 (tied for first in Big 12)

Head coach: Augie Garrido (Fresno State, 1961)

Record at school: 660-297-2, 15 years

Overall record: 1,811-821-8, 43 years

Assistant coaches: Tommy Harmon, Skip Johnson, Travis Tucker

Team offense: .270 BA, 307 R, 13 HR, .375 SLG%, .373 OB%, 64-82 SB

Team pitching: 2.25 ERA, 528.2 IP, 366 H, 171 BB, 500 K

Top hitters: Erich Weiss (.368/4/38/10-12 SB), Brandon Loy (.347/1/26/20 2B, 15-19 SB), Paul Montalbano (.293/0/27), Tant Shepherd (.293/4/35/17 2B), Mark Payton (.256/0/20), Jonathan Walsh (.248/2/26/14 2B)

Top pitchers: Taylor Jungmann (13-0, 0.95, 122.2 IP, 67 H, 27 BB, 116 K), Corey Knebel (2-2, 16 SV, 1.32, 47.2 IP, 23 H, 12 BB, 56 K), Sam Stafford (5-2, 1.70, 63.2 IP, 44 H, 37 BB, 75 K), Hoby Milner (6-4, 1 SV, 2.58, 73.1 IP, 49 H, 27 BB, 54 K), Cole Green (7-3, 3.20, 90 IP, 74 H, 18 BB, 90 K)

Last NCAA appearance: 2010 (3-0 in Austin Regional, 1-2 in Austin Super Regional)

Notes: Texas will host a regional for the 26th time. The Longhorns have won six national championships (1949, 1959, 1975, 1983, 2002, 2005). The Longhorns again lead the nation in ERA at 2.25. Junior right-hander Taylor Jungmann is a perfect 13-0 with an ERA of 0.95. He was a unanimous choice for Big 12 Pitcher of the Year. Jungmann is expected to be a high pick in this year’s MLB Draft. Head coach Augie Garrido was named Big 12 Co-Coach of the Year. Erich Weiss was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year. His father, Gary, played collegiate baseball at Houston and played in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ system. Closer Corey Knebel leads the Big 12 with 16 saves, a school freshman record.

2. Texas State Bobcats

San Marcos, Texas

Automatic bid – won Southland Conference tournament

2011 record: 24-9, 40-21 (first in Southland)

Head coach: Ty Harrington (Texas, 1989)

Record at school: 415-295, 12 years

Overall record: same

Assistant coaches: Derek Matlock, Jeremy Fikac, Jordan Kopycinski

Team offense: .290 BA, 377 R, 52 HR, .422 SLG%, .384 OB%, 91-113 SB

Team pitching: 3.92 ERA, 503 IP, 526 H, 205 BB, 456 K

Top hitters: Tyler Sibley (.347/5/31/19-23 SB), Jeff McVaney (.332/10/43), Casey Kalenkosky (.318/19/62), Andrew Stumph (.306/4/36), Kyle Kubitza (.293/7/55/15-18 SB), Bret Atwood (.284/0/22/18-23 SB)

Top Pitchers: Carson Smith (9-3, 1.98, 104.1 IP, 81 H, 46 BB, 124 K), Jeff McVaney (1-1, 2.14, 8 SV, 21 IP, 21 H, 9 BB, 20 K), Fielding Pittman (2-2, 3.25, 36 IP, 42 H, 9 BB, 21 K), Mitchell Pitts (5-3, 3.75, 96 IP, 100 H, 31 BB, 68 K), Joseph Dvorsky (2-0, 3.82, 6 SV, 30.2 IP, 36 H, 10 BB, 33 K), Colton Turner (8-2, 4.56, 75 IP, 80 H, 26 BB, 68 K)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2009 (0-2 at Austin Regional)

Notes: Texas State is making its fifth appearance and second in the past three years. The Bobcats are seeking their first NCAA tourney win since 2000. Coach Ty Harrington lettered at Texas for two years and was a member of the Longhorns teams that played in three College World Series (1984, 1985, 1987 - Harrington was a captain in 87). Texas State has a bona fide star in Carson Smith, who allowed only 12 extra-base hits and limited opponents to a .213 average. Smith, the Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year, did walk 46 and plunk 19 batters, though. Jeff McVaney is a talented two-way player, ranking in the top three in the major hitting categories and posting a team-best eight saves. Center fielder Bret Atwood had a diving/tumbling catch in the Southland Conference tourney that was deemed the top play on ESPN's SportsCenter.

3. Kent State Golden Flashes

Kent, Ohio

Automatic bid – won Mid-American Conference Tournament

2011 record: 21-5, 43-15 (first in East Division)

Head coach: Scott Stricklin (Kent State, 1995)

Record at school: 265-143, 7 years

Overall record: same

Assistant coaches: Mike Birkbeck, Scott Daeley, Doug Sanders

Team offense: .296 BA, 357 R, 38 HR, .422 SLG%, .373 OB%, 48-64 SB

Team pitching: 2.56 ERA, 514 IP, 440 H, 160 BB, 482 K

Top hitters: Ben Klafczynski (.368/10/54/17 2B), David Lyon (.318/8/49), Travis Shaw (.316/14/51/13 2B), Evan Campbell (.301/1/35), Jimmy Rider (.299/1/46/16 2B), Joe Koch (.297/0/22/10-11 SB), Derek Toadvine (.282/1/25/15-16 SB)

Top pitchers: Andrew Chafin (7-1, 1.90, 80.1 IP, 55 H, 21 BB, 97 K), Kyle Hallock (10-4, 1.91, 99 IP, 95 H, 23 BB, 83 K), David Starn (9-2, 1.95, 101.1 IP, 84 H, 21 BB, 114 K), Kyle McMillen (0-2, 17 SV, 2.03, 26.2 IP, 16 H, 11 BB, 28 K)

Last NCAA appearance: 2010 (0-2 at Los Angeles Regional)

Notes: Kent State is making its 12th appearance and third straight. Its last win in the tourney was a 10-9 victory over Cal Poly in Tempe in 2009. Scott Stricklin has led the Golden Flashes to 43 wins for the second straight year (third most in school history). Associate head coach Mike Birkbeck pitched professionally for 14 seasons, including four with the Milwaukee Brewers and two with the New York Mets. Travis Shaw, whose father is former major league pitcher Jeff Shaw, had 14 homers and 39 walks. Reliever David Wright’s father, Robert, played for the Chicago Bears in 1980. He is one of only 13 NFL players to be drafted and earn a doctorate degree. Ace Andrew Chafin can flat out deal. Stricklin has called him the best pitcher he has ever coached. The lefty is fully recovered from Tommy John surgery and has a mid-90s fastball – opponents hit .193 against him and he’s struck out 97 in 80.1 innings.

4. Princeton Tigers

Princeton, New Jersey

Automatic bid – won Ivy League championship

2011 record: 15-5, 23-22 (first in Lou Gehrig Division)

Head coach: Scott Bradley (North Carolina, 1982)

Record at school: 198-312-1, 14 years

Overall record: same

Assistant coaches: Lloyd Brewer, Jeremy Meccage, Hank Coogan

Team offense: .276 BA, 231 R, 17 HR, .375 SLG%, .341 OB%, 41-52 SB

Team pitching: 4.87 ERA, 371.1 IP, 388 H, 161 BB, 252 K

Top hitters: Sam Mulroy (.324/7/39/13-15 SB), Jonathan York (.317/0/10), Steve Harrington (.315/1/22), Matt Bowman (.314/0/19), Mike Ford (.299/3/30), John Mishu (.291/1.28), Alex Flink (.289/0/10), Nate Baird (.260/2/21)

Top Pitchers: A.J. Goetz (3-1, 1.33, 3 SV, 27 IP, 18 H, 11 BB, 25 K), Zak Hermans (5-1, 2.85, 66.1 IP, 63 H, 17 BB, 52 K), Kevin Link (0-1, 2.93, 27.2 IP, 21 H, 11 BB, 15 K), Mike Ford (5-3, 3.94, 63.1 IP, 65 H, 16 BB, 37 K)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2006 (0-2 at Fayetteville Regional)

Notes: Princeton returns to the NCAA field for the first time since 2006, when it lost to Oklahoma State and Arkansas. The Tigers' last NCAA win came against Virginia in 2004. Former big leaguer Scott Bradley has guided the Tigers for the past dozen years - he was the Yankees' second pick in 1981 (John Elway was the first) and caught a Randy Johnson no-hitter while with Seattle in 1990. His brother Bob is the U.S. national men's soccer coach. Catcher Sam Mulroy has been the team's offensive leader the past two seasons, leading the team in extra base hits each season. He also led the team in stolen bases. Zak Hermans had an ERA of 7.38 last year, shaving nearly five runs off that ledger this year. Freshman Mike Ford tossed four complete games and was second on the team with 30 RBI. Princeton has not played since May 6, when it defeated Dartmouth to win the Ivy League title.