2011 Fullerton Regional

1. Cal State Fullerton Titans

Fullerton, California

Automatic bid – won Big West Conference championship

2011 record: 19-5, 40-15 (first in Big West)

Head coach: Dave Serrano (Trinity College, 2003)

Record at school: 174-71, 4 years

Overall record: 288-137-1, 7 years

Assistant coaches: Greg Bergeron, Gregg Wallis, Kirk Saarloos, Brock Floro

Team offense: .285 BA, 304 R, 17 HR, .384 SLG%, .375 OB%, 93/140 SB

Team pitching: 2.85 ERA, 484 IP, 436 H, 122 BB, 440 K

Top hitters: Michael Lorenzen (.350/2/31/19-26 SB), Richy Pedroza (.346/0/22), Carlos Lopez (.338/2/33), Tyler Pill (.324/1/28), Anthony Trajano (.317/0/23), Jared Deacon (.307/0/12), Ivory Thomas (.293/1/16/18 HBP/19-27 SB), Nick Ramirez (.285/9/45/15 2B)

Top pitchers: Nick Ramirez (1-0, 16 SV, 1.12, 24 IP, 13 H, 8 BB, 31 K), Noe Ramirez (8-3, 1.74, 82.2 IP, 52 H, 18 BB, 91 K), Tyler Pill (6-1, 2.08, 90.2 IP, 72 H, 19 BB, 99 K), Colin O’Connell (7-3, 2.42, 70.2 IP, 63 H, 6 BB, 49 K)

Last NCAA appearance: 2010 (4-1 at Fullerton Regional, 1-2 at Los Angeles Super Regional)

Notes: Cal State Fullerton will appear in its 20th straight NCAA tournament, the third-longest active streak in the nation. Miami is at 39 and Florida State is at 34. The Titans have hosted a regional 10 times since 2000. In Dave Serrano’s four years at Fullerton, the Titans have won three Big West championship, three regional titles and one Super Regional. Serrano was named Big West Coach of the Year, while Nick Ramirez was Player of the Year and Michael Lorenzen was Freshman Player of the Year. Ramirez leads the Big West with nine home runs and is 16 for 16 in save opportunities. Lorenzen was selected in the seventh round of the 2010 MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Rays.

2. Stanford Cardinal

Stanford, California

At-large bid from Pac-10

2011 record: 14-12, 32-20 (fifth in Pac-10)

Head coach: Mark Marquess (Stanford, 1969)

Record at school: 1,419-739-7, 34 years

Overall record: same

Assistant coaches: Dean Stotz, Rusty Filter, Brock Ungricht

Team offense: .298 BA, 278 R, 23 HR, .406 SLG%, .358 OB%, 29-45 SB

Team pitching: 3.50 ERA, 457.1 IP, 433 H, 170 BB, 362 K

Top hitters: Stephen Piscotty (.361/2/36), Brian Rigara (.321/4/41), Tyler Gaffney (.320/3/32), Austin Wilson (.313/4/24), Kenny Diekroeger (.298/2/29), Jake Stewart (.294/0/18), Lonnie Kauppila (.288/1/20)

Top pitchers: Chris Reed (6-2, 2.62, 8 SV, 48.1 IP, 35 H, 14 BB, 45 K), Mark Appel (5-6, 3.02, 95.1 IP, 100 H, 26 BB, 75 K), A.J. Vanegas (1-0, 3.07, 40.1 IP, 36 H, 20 BB, 30 K), Danny Sandbrink (3-1, 3.50, 54 IP, 45 H, 14 BB, 39 K), Jordan Priess (5-5, 3.53, 86.2 IP, 89 H, 30 BB, 68 K), Dean McArdle (7-4, 4.15, 56.1 IP, 55 H, 22 BB, 30 K)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2010 (0-2 at Fullerton Regional)

Notes: Stanford is making its 16th appearance in the past 18 seasons. The Cardinal is built on pitching but has some pop in the lineup in Stephen Piscotty, Brian Ragira and Tyler Gaffney. Piscotty normally puts the ball in play (only 26 Ks) and is among the team leaders in runs. Ragira is the team leader in RBI and is second in slugging. And Gaffney leads in runs (39) and slugging percentage (.478) – he also has been walked or hit 33 times, best on the team. Austin Wilson can be dangerous (10 extra base hits), but he also has 53 Ks and only seven walks in 176 ABs. Don’t expect Stanford to steal a lot – it has about a stolen base every other game. Expect more hit and run. On the mound, the Cardinal makes you put in in play – there aren’t a bunch of dominant arms, just a bunch of guys who know how to pitch. Dean McArdle leads in wins with seven. Mark Appel has been a hard-luck pitcher, posting quality starts but only five wins despite a 3.02 ERA.

3. Kansas State Wildcats

Manhattan, Kansas

At-large bid from Big 12

2011 record: 12-14, 36-23 (sixth in Big 12)

Head coach: Brad Hill (Emporia State, 1985)

Record at school: 266-191-3, 8 years

Overall record: 684-282-3, 17 years

Assistant coaches: John Szefc, Josh Reynolds, Sean McCann

Team offense: .280 BA, 352 R, 34 HR, .406 SLG%, .366 OB%, 123-151 SB

Team pitching: 4.21 ERA, 534.1 IP, 540 H, 202 BB, 439 K

Top hitters: Jason King (.333/10/57/19 2B/16-18 SB), Nick Martini (.326/1/42/24-28 SB), Ross Kivett (.322/0/19), Jared King (.314/8/40/13-16 SB), Jake Brown (.262/1/20/18-20 SB), Mike Kindel (.246/7/41/14-16 SB), Tanner Witt (.246/0/18/14-16 SB)

Top pitchers: James Allen (3-1, 17 SV, 1.35, 40 IP, 25 H, 11 BB, 45 K), Evan Marshall (5-5, 1 SV, 1.71, 58 IP, 45 H, 15 BB, 50 K), Kyle Hunter (5-4, 4.26, 86.2 IP, 89 H, 25 BB, 78 K), Matt Applegate (5-4, 4.31, 85.2 IP, 87 H, 26 BB, 76 K)

Last NCAA appearance: 2010 (1-2 at Fayetteville Regional)

Notes: coming soon

4. Illinois Fighting Illini

Champaign, Illinois

Automatic bid – won Big Ten tournament

2011 record: 15-9, 28-25 (tied for first in Big Ten)

Head coach: Dan Hartleb (Southern Illinois, 1989

Record at school: 179-152, 6 years

Overall record: same

Assistant coaches: Eric Snider, Ken Westray, Drew Dickinson

Team offense: .284 BA, 310 R, 28 HR, .399 SLG%, .359 OB%, 95-125 SB

Team pitching: 4.84 ERA, 464.2 IP, 481 H, 198 BB, 299 K

Top hitters: Justin Parr (.333/0/30), Pete Cappetta (.326/2/16/14-15 SB), Brandon Hohl (.311/5/38), Josh Parr (.306/2/33/17-19 SB), Davis Hendrickson (.304/2/24), Adam Davis (.300/5/33/15-18 SB), Willie Argo (.286/4/26/25-34 SB)

Top Pitchers: Wes Braun (2-0, 0.49, 6 SV, 18.1 IP, 8 H, 11 BB, 13 K), Luke Joyce (1-1, 1.96, 18.1 IP, 18 H, 9 BB, 12 K), Will Strack (3-1, 3.35, 37.2 IP, 35 H, 25 BB, 29 K), Kevin Johnson (2-6, 4.33, 97.2 IP, 99 H, 37 BB, 67 K), John Anderson (7-6, 4.40, 90 IP, 88 H, 24 BB, 52K), Chris Pack (7-1, 4.99, 48.2 IP, 43 H, 8 BB, 29 K)

Last NCAA Appearance: 2000 (1-2 at Clemson Regional)

Notes: The Fighting Illini last played in the NCAA tourney in 2000 and will be making its ninth appearance. Illinois has won 16 of 20 games after a 12-21 start. Coach Dan Hartleb has spent 20 years on the coaching staff, the past five as head coach. Junior Willie Argo has stolen 66 bases the past two years and as a freshman is believed to be only the second player in NCAA history to hit three homers in his debut. Brother Josh and Justin Parr are a big part of the offense - Justin has a twin brother named Jordan who plays baseball at Parkland College. Second baseman Pete Cappetta has raised his batting average 100 points over the past 20 games. Ace John Anderson tossed four complete games.