The NCAA News - News and Features

May 12, 1997

Division II

Pitching gives Tampa strong title hopes

Event: 1997 Division II Baseball Championship.

Overview: Top-ranked Tampa (38-12) is shooting for its third national title at the 30th annual championship and the first since the Spartans won back-to-back championships in 1992 and 1993. Tampa's pitching has been surprisingly strong, considering a preseason injury to all-American pitcher Ricky Burton that prompted a medical redshirt. Sophomore Mike Valdes is a perfect 11-0 with a 3.16 earned-run average, while senior Bo Donaldson is 8-5 and ranks among national leaders with a 2.48 ERA. Freshman third-baseman Ronnie Merrill leads the team with a .392 batting average and 61 runs batted in; the Spartans are hitting .347 as a team .... Tampa's chief rival in the Sunshine State Conference is perennial power and second-ranked Florida Southern (41-9). The Mocs, who have won eight national titles, including the 1995 championship, have pitched consistently well all season. Seniors Shawn Austin (9-2, 1.72) and Brent Wagler (9-2, 2.42) are two of the top pitchers in the conference, if not the nation. Offensively, seven of the Mocs' nine starters have at least 10 stolen bases and four have 20 or more .... Head coach Mike Sansing and defending champion Kennesaw State (39-11) will try to become the first Division II team to win repeat championships since Tampa. Sansing has moved three starters to new positions since the Owls won four straight games last year in the finals: right fielder Brannon Whatley; third baseman Daniel Jordan and relief pitcher Jason Jones. Shortstop Seth LaFera leads the team with a .345 average and 44 RBIs. The Owls lead the nation with a 2.43 team ERA .... Other contenders include Cal State Chico, Mount Olive, Mercyhurst, Georgia College, Mesa State and UC Riverside.

Field: Twenty-four teams.

Dates and sites: Regional competition will be May 15-18 at on-campus sites. The eight regional champions will advance to the double-elimination finals May 24-31 at Montgomery, Alabama.

Television coverage: The championship game will be televised live by SportSouth at 7 p.m. (Central time) May 31.

Information/results: The fax-on-demand telephone number is 770/399-3066 (passcode 1915); request numbers are 1221 for bracket/schedule and 5020 for results. Scores and pairings from regional competition will appear in the May 26 issue of the News; championship results June 9.