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Big 12 puts three in Baseball America's Top 10

The Big 12 Conference is well represented in this week's Baseball America Top 25, as two teams from the conference moved into the top 10.

Texas A&M's move up came at the expense of a fellow conference foe, as their three-game sweep of Missouri moved the Aggies up eight spots to No. 10, but dropped the Tigers from No. 4 to No. 15 this week.

The Aggies are joined by Oklahoma State, which moved up four spots to No. 9. Nebraska has been in the Baseball America Top 10 for about a month now and moved up two more spots to No. 6 after taking two of three at Baylor.

Miami and North Carolina reamin in the top two positions. Georgia, Missouri and Cal all fell out of the top 10. San Diego returned to the top 10, joining Oklahoma State and Texas A&M. Two-time defending champion Oregon State and St. John's moved into the top 25 this week, replacing Ole Miss and Arizona.

This week's Baseball America Top 25 is as follows:

1. Miami (36-5, 1), 2. North Carolina (38-8, 2), 3. Stanford (25-13, 5), 4. Arizona State (35-7, 6), 5. Florida State (35-7, 3),

6. Nebraska (32-8, 8), 7. Rice (34-11, 9), 8. San Diego (35-11, 11), 9. Oklahoma State (32-11, 13), 10. Texas A&M (37-7, 18),

11. Georgia (29-14, 10), 12. Cal State Fullerton (26-15, 15), 13. UC Irvine (28-10, 16), 14. Wichita State (33-9, 14), 15. Missouri (29-14, 4),

16. California (27-13, 7), 17. South Carolina (31-14, 12), 18. Kentucky (33-11, 22), 19. North Carolina State (30-13, 24), 20. Coastal Carolina (36-9, 20),

21. Michigan (30-10, 19), 22. Vanderbilt (31-13, 17), 23. Oregon State (20-14 2-1 NR), 24. St. John's (31-10, NR), 25. Long Beach State (26-15, 25).

Sun Devils back in Race To Rosenblatt rankings

There is a little bit of shuffling in this week's Race To Rosenblatt rankings, but a team that looked to be a lock for the No. 1 slot before suffering a mid-season slump appears to be back in the swing of things.

Arizona State simply dominated a very good Cal team over the weekend, and that effort helped push them back among our top eight teams this week. Making room for them is Wichita State, which was unable to seal the deal at Indiana State and drops into the contender category.

There was a little shifting in this week's rankings, thanks to Missouri being swept on the road at Texas A&M. The Aggies are leading the Big 12 Conference and could find themselves in contention here if they continue to play well. They will get a chance to shake up these rankings the weekend after next when they travel to Nebraska in a series that may very well determined the Big 12's regular-season champion.

The loss by the Tigers drops them to No. 7 this week, and Stanford moves up to No. 3 after dominating USC over the weekend. The Huskers move to No. 4 and Florida State drops to No. 5 after losing two of three at North Carolina, which remains No. 2 behind Miami. Rice moves up two spots to No. 6 this week.

Wichita State and San Diego are among the contenders who could move in next week, depending on how things shake up as we get down to the final month of the regular season.

CWS Tickets' Race To Rosenblatt

1. Miami (Fla.)

2. North Carolina

3. Stanford

4. Nebraska

5. Florida State

6. Rice

7. Missouri

8. Arizona State

Texas A&M takes control of Big 12 race

Many of the top teams in the country were able to come away with weekend series wins, but there were some notable results that found some top teams on the wrong side of the win-loss equation.

Aggies sweep Missouri

Texas A&M already had a one-game lead in the Big 12 Conference race, and they took a big step toward winning the regular-season title with a key sweep of MIssouri at home over the weekend.

The Aggies won a squeaker on Friday 9-8, then dominated the Tigers Saturday by a 15-0 margin to secure the series win. They went extra innings on Sunday, taking a 3-2 win in 10 innings to finish off the sweep.

The win gives Texas A&M a 2 1/2 game lead over Nebraska in the Big 12 Conference race.

Huskers get rare series win at Baylor

The Nebraska baseball team has historically had a tough time winning at Baylor, but swept a doubleheader Saturday to claim the series win over the upstart Bears.

The Huskers won the opener 6-4 in 10 innings, then dominated the Bears 16-1 to claim the nightcap. After an hour-long rain delay, the Bears came out strong and were able to come away with the nightcap by an 8-3 decision.

Sun Devils back on track

After struggling the past couple of weekends, it looks like Arizona State is back on track after dominating a solid Cal team in a weekend series.

The Sun Devils won Friday's and Saturday's games by identical 11-7 scores, then blew up the Bears in the finale for an 18-2 win to win their first conference series in three weeks.

Tar Heels win key ACC battle

North Carolina won an exciting extra-inning affair on Sunday to claim a weekend series from Florida State.

The Tar Heels won Sunday's finale 2-1 in 10 innings to take the series. They opened the series Friday with an 11-4 win, but Florida State evened things up on Saturday with a 13-5 victory.

Cal State Fullerton takes home series

The Cal State Fullerton Titans won the finale of a three-game set from UC Davis 8-5 to take the series. The Titans won the opener 5-3, but UC Davis evened things up Saturday with a 3-2 win.

Omaha, NCAA negotiating new stadium's revenue

Officials representing Omaha are negotiating with the NCAA on future revenue sources on a new stadium that would serve as the future home of the College World Series.

Revenue from stadium naming rights, luxury boxes and premium seating that would be generated from the proposed $140 million stadium are to be split between the city and the NCAA.

Who gets what is something that is still being discussed by both sides. Qwest Center president Roger Dixon told the Omaha World-Herald that the naming rights for the stadium could be handled through the NCAA with one of its corporate benefactors, such as Lowe's, State Farm Insurance and Pontiac.

Omaha is negotiating an agreement that would result in a long-term commitment from the NCAA to keep the College World Series in Omaha well past 2010. Reports are that the city is looking for a 20- or 30-year agreement, and they feel they will get a deal done by the end of this month and have the contract signed by June 10, less than a week before the start of 2008 College World Series.

College World Series is coming soon

The 2008 College World Series is fast approacing, as college baseball's top teams continue their journey toward an opportunity to play in the sport's top national tournament this summer at Rosenblatt Stadium.

The College World Series starts a day later this year, with the tournament kicking off Saturday, June 14. FanFest activities have been moved up to the preceding Friday, and the tournament will continue through the best-of-three championship series, which starts Monday, June 23.

This year's schedule is as follows:

Tournament Schedule

(NOTE: All times listed are Central)

Saturday, June 14
Game 1: Teams TBA, 1 p.m.
Game 2: Teams TBA, 6 p.m.

Sunday, June 15
Game 3: Teams TBA, 1 p.m.
Game 4: Teams TBA, 6 p.m.

Monday, June 16
Game 5: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2, 1 p.m.
Game 6: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2, 6 p.m.

Tuesday, June 17
Game 7: Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4, 1 p.m.
Game 8: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 6 p.m.

Wednesday, June 18
Game 9: Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 6 p.m.

Thursday, June 19
Game 10: Winner Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8, 6 p.m.

Friday, June 20
Game 11: Winner Game 6 vs. Winner Game 9, 1 p.m.
Game 12: Winner Game 8 vs. Winner Game 10, 6 p.m.

Saturday, June 21
Game 13: Winner Game 6 vs. Winner Game 11, 1 p.m.
Game 14: Winner Game 8 vs. Winner Game 12, 6 p.m.

(NOTE: If only one game is played Saturday, it will be at 6 p.m.)

Championship Series

(NOTE: All start times are at 6 p.m.)

Monday, June 23
Game 1: Bracket winners

Tuesday, June 24
Game 2: Bracket winners

Wednesday, June 25
Game 3: Bracket winners (if necessary)

Single-game tickets will be available, as well as all-tournament tickets. Order your College World Series tickets now at Ticket Express -- where no College World Series game is ever sold out.

Another big ACC battle highlights weekend docket

As if facing the No. 1 team in a weekend series wasn't tough enough, Florida State gets the No. 2 team on the road this week to highlight some of the top college baseball weekend series.

Florida State at North Carolina

The No. 5 Seminoles lost two of three to top-ranked Miami (Fla.) last week, and now must go on the road to face second-ranked North Carolina in what will be a key ACC series. The Tar Heels are 1 1/2 games behind Miami in the Coastal Division, so this will be an important series for them as well with Miami playing Virginia this weekend.

Cal at Arizona State

The Bears and Sun Devils are tied for second place in the Pac 10, just one game behind Stanford. Cal has a great chance to move into second place against a Sun Devil pitching staff that is starting to show its mortality. Losing a home conference series for the second weekend in a row could shake the confidence of a team that looked like world beaters a couple of weeks ago.

Missouri at Texas A&M

The Aggies are in first place in the Big 12 right now, but the Tigers have a very solid pitching staff. This series will go a long way toward determining the conference regular-season champion.

Arizona at Oregon State

After a slow start, the Wildcats are catching fire at just the right time. Oregon State is coming off a big road series win at Arizona State and looks to be starting the kind of midseason run that led them to the last two College World Series titles. Something has to give here.

UC Davis at Cal State Fullerton

The Titans have moved into first place in the Big West and will look to stay there in this conference showdown with a UC Davis team that is looking like a postseason program.

Nebraska at Baylor

The Huskers have had a hard time winning in Waco over the years, and will need to win this series to stay in the Big 12 title hunt. Baylor needs this one to stay on the radar for a postseason bid.

Arkansas at Ole Miss

A key SEC showdown here as the Razorbacks meet a Rebels team that is starting to get its groove back after an early-season stumble.

Virginia at Miami (Fla.)

Coming off a big road win at Florida State, the Hurricanes hope to hold serve against a good Virginia team.

Miami No. 1 again in Baseball America rankings

Miami took two of three from Florida State in a battle of top three teams to stay at the top of the Baseball America Top 25 rankings.

Despite losing the series to their in-state rivals, Florida State stays put at No. 3 this week. North Carolina moves ahead of the Seminoles into the No. 2 spot after they swept Boston College. Arizona State drops from No. 2 to No. 6 after losing two of three at home to Oregon State.

Stanford and Oklahoma State were the big upward movers of the week, as both moved up five spots. Stanford is No. 5 this week, while the Cowboys moved up to No. 13. UC Irvine made the biggest drop of the week, falling from No. 5 to No. 16.

This week's Baseball America rankings are as follows (record and last week's ranking in parenthesis):

1. Miami (33-4, 1), 2. North Carolina (34-7, 4), 3. Florida State (34-5, 3), 4. Missouri (28-10, 6), 5. Stanford (21-12, 10),

6. Arizona State (31-6, 2), 7. California (26-10, 8), 8. Nebraska (28-7, 9), 9. Rice (31-10, 11), 10. Georgia (27-12, 13),

11. San Diego (31-11, 12), 12. South Carolina (29-11, 14), 13. Oklahoma State (27-11, 18), 14. Wichita State (30-7, 7), 15. Cal State Fullerton (23-13, 15),

16. UC Irvine (24-9, 5), 17. Vanderbilt (28-11, 17), 18. Texas A&M (33-7, 19), 19. Michigan (28-8, 21), 20. Coastal Carolina (33-7, 22),

21. Mississippi (25-15, 16), 22. Kentucky (30-9, 25), 23. Arizona (25-11, NR), 24. North Carolina State (27-12, NR), 25. Long Beach State (23-14, NR).

Race To Rosenblatt -- Miami still lead dog

The University of Miami (Fla.) Hurricanes did nothing to discourage us from keeping them at the top of our Race To Rosenblatt rankings.

Winning two of three on the road is never easy, and doing it against a very talented in-state rival is even more impressive. The Hurricanes turned the trick in Tallahassee, beating Florida State in a key ACC showdown.

The loss does knock the Seminoles down a notch this week, but they aren't the only team to take a tumble.

Arizona State, which was looking like a world-beater of a program just a couple of weeks ago, lost a Pac 10 series again over the weekend, this time at home to Oregon State. It was the first time the two-time defending College World Series champion Beavers won a series in Tempe, and that was enough to knock the former top team completely out of our top eight this week.

Taking the open spot in the lineup is Rice, which dominated a good East Carolina team in a key Conference USA showdown. The Owls look poised to make another run at Omaha and they slip into our rankings this week.

Missouri and Stanford make two-spot promotions this week after winning series on the road. Nebraska and Wichita State both move up a spot this week after winning conference home series over Kansas and Southern Illinois, respectively.

Our Race To Rosenblatt rankings for this week are as follows:

1. Miami (Fla.)

2. North Carolina

3. Missouri

4. Stanford

5. Florida State

6. Nebraska

7. Wichita State

8. Rice

Hurricanes win battle of ranked teams

April showers may bring May flowers, but the month also brings its share of weekend baseball and some great conference action.

Hurricanes win battle for Florida

Miami took two of three in Tallahassee over the weekend, beating Florida State in a battle of the No. 1 and No. 4 teams in our Race To Rosenblatt rankings.

On Friday, the Hurricanes dominated behind Jemile Weeks' three-hit effort and Miami scored 10 runs in the sixth to claim an 11-4 win. The Seminoles tied the series Saturday behind Jason Stidham's four hits and three RBI's to win 9-5, but the Hurricanes took the rubber game, as Yonder Alonso hit two homers, including a grand slam, to give Miami an 11-10 win.

Defending champs win at Arizona State

Just when you thought the two-time defending College World Series champion Oregon State Beavers were down and out, they came back and won two of three at Arizona State over the weekend.

The Beavers won Friday 6-4 and Saturday 12-3. On Friday, the Beavers rallied from a three-run deficit with five in the ninth, then dominated the Sun Devils Saturday to win their first-ever series at Arizona State.

Cowboys sweep Texas on the road

It was another road sweep in Austin as Oklahoma State took three from Texas, winning 2-1, 8-7 and 13-10.

Matt Hague drove in the game winner and got the win in the 11th inning of Friday's opener, and the Cowboys rallied again on Saturday with three in the ninth. They made it 3-for-3 on Sunday, coming back from a six-run deficit.

Owls sweep East Carolina

Rice took care of an up-and-coming East Carolina squad in a key Conference USA matchup, sweeping the Pirates 10-3, 5-4 and 7-1.

Adam Zornes had four hits and three RBI's for the Owls in the opener. A bases-loaded walk in the 10th helped the Owls win a tight one on Saturday to claim the series, and they finished off the sweep behind the complete-game effort of Matt Langwell on Sunday.

Aggies solidify Big 12 lead

Texas A&M maintained their hold of the Big 12 Conference lead with a big sweep of Baylor at home.

On Friday, Darby Brown scored the game-winning run when he was hit by a pitch with two out in the bottom of the ninth, giving Texas A&M a 2-1 win. The Aggies hit five home runs on Saturday to clinch the series with an 11-1 win, then won a 13-12, 11-inning barn-burner to secure the series sweep.

Other series results of interest

Race To Rosenblatt No. 2 North Carolina handled Boston College, winning 10-3, 6-0 and 8-2.

Fifth-ranked Missouri won two of three at Oklahoma, winning the first two 9-4 and 6-5 before Oklahoma broke out the bats for a 22-4 win in the finale.

No. 6 Stanford took two of three at UCLA, winning 4-1 and 6-1 before the Bruins claimed the nightcap 8-2.

No. 7 Nebraska claimed a home series with Kansas, winning 7-6 and 8-6 before the Jayhawks claimed the getaway game 6-3.

Wichita State solidified their No. 8 ranking by taking two of three from Southern Illinois. They won the opener 10-0 and the finale 8-3, while the Salukis took the middle game 3-0.

UC Riverside took two of three from UC Irvine, dropping the opener 7-2 before winning the final two games by scores of 5-3 and 7-5.

Kentucky won two of three over Florida, winning the opener 11-7 and the finale 3-2 in 10 innings. Florida took the middle game of the series, 13-7.

Cal took two of three from Washington, winning the opener 10-5 and the finale 5-4. Washington won the middle game of the series, 7-4.

San Diego swept St. Mary's at home, winning 9-2, 6-0 and 5-1.

Team Feature -- Florida State Seminoles

It's been a few years since the Florida State Seminoles have graced Rosenblatt Stadium with their presence at the College World Series. But if the first half of the season is any indicator, we may see the "Tomhawk Chop" make its first appearance in Omaha in eight years this summer.

The Seminoles struggled offensively last year, but they seem to have things going on all cylinders right now with a 33-3 record and a No. 4 ranking in our Race To Rosenblatt rankings.

Florida State leads the nation in wins and is one of four teams with 30 or more wins at this point in the season. The most impressive stat, though, is the round-trippers they're producing. In their first 34 games in 2008, Florida State hit 51 round-trippers. By comparison, they didn't hit their 51st home run last year until the 61st game of the season.

Much of that success in going long has fallen on the shoulders of Dennis Guinn and Buster Posey. Guinn has 11 home runs this season, while Posey is right behind him with 10 round-trippers.

Posey has been a nightmare for opposing pitchers all season. He leads the Atlantic Coast Conference in six offensive categories, and his .469 batting average is among the best in the nation. He leads the ACC in average, hits, runs scored, total bases, on-base percentage and slugging percentage, and he's among the conference leaders n five other categories.

And while chicks dig the long ball, the Seminoles are also pretty good at staying focused at the plate. They lead the nation with 238 walks so far this season, while striking out just 208 times. As a team, the Seminoles are batting a pretty healthy .352.

Florida State is getting some great pitching this year from Matt Fairel, who is 8-0 with a 2.38 earned-run average. He leads the ACC in wins and is among the leaders in ERA, innings pitched and opposing batting average.

That pitching is helping the Seminoles in close games, and they have come through in the clutch just about every time this year. Florida State is 10-0 so far in one-run games (they were 7-2 all of last year), and have had four walk-off wins in 2008.

The Seminoles were upset in the first round of regionals last year, and with the way they are playing right now it's a good bet they'll be one of the teams in the hunt for a trip to the College World Series this summer.