National Collegiate Athletic Association

The NCAA News - News and Features

August 18, 1997

Tournament format revisions recommended in II baseball

Recommendations to revise the formats for championship final and regional competition were among the major items discussed recently by the NCAA Division II Baseball Committee.

The committee voted during its July 8-11 meeting in Kansas City, Missouri, to alter the championship final bracket so that the winners and losers of Games 1 and 2 competition would play Monday (winners playing each other and losers playing each other). In addition, the winners and losers of Games 3 and 4 would play Tuesday.

The change would provide for a winner's contest Monday, instead of two losers' games, and allow equitable rest. Currently, the winning teams from Saturday and Sunday play Tuesday, which provides an extra day of rest for the Saturday winners.

With the tournament field increasing from 24 to 32 teams in 1998, the committee also voted to recommend that the eight four-team regionals be conducted over a three-day period, with all games beginning Thursday, May 14.

The committee also will recommend that the regional host have the option of playing in the first or second game of the first day of competition.

The committee voted to propose the following regional format:

First Day -- Game 1 -- Seed 2 vs. Seed 3

-- Game 2 -- Seed 1 vs. Seed 4

Second Day -- Game 3 -- Loser Game 1

-- -- vs. Loser Game 2

-- Game 4 -- Winner Game 1

-- -- vs. Winner Game 2

-- Game 5 -- Winner Game 3

-- -- vs. Loser Game 4

Third Day -- Game 6 -- Winner Game 4

-- -- vs. Winner Game 5

-- Game 7 -- If necessary

The Division II Championships Committee will review the committee's recommendations at its August 24-26 meeting.

Other highlights

Division II Baseball Committee
July 8-11/Kansas City, Missouri

  • Voted to propose to the Division II Championships Committee that Games 9 and 10 in the championship final be "cross-over" games, instead of Games 11 and 12. The winner of Game 5 in Bracket One would cross over to play the loser of Game 8 in Bracket Two. Also, the winner of Game 6 in Bracket Two would cross over to play the loser of Game 7 in Bracket One.

  • Voted to seek Division II Championships Committee approval to move the Heart of Texas Conference from the South Central region to the West region.

  • Voted to recommend conducting the South regional in St. Petersburg, Florida, and that the St. Petersburg/Clearwater Area Sports Foundation and the Sunshine State Conference assume the role of host.

  • Voted to recommend that a team must have at least a .500 won-lost record in order to be selected to participate in the championship.