May 30, 2016
Nashville, Tenn. — For the fourth straight year Vanderbilt is set to host a NCAA Regional with Xavier, Washington and UC Santa Barbara joining the Commodores in the four-team Regional.
Vanderbilt is set to meet Xavier on Friday in the opening round. The two teams played earlier this year at Hawkins Field with the Commodores sweeping the Musketeers in the three-game series. VU played Xavier in the 2014 opening game of the Nashville Regional with the Commodores winning 11-0 behind a 14-strikeout performance from Tyler Beede. The Dores are 8-2 all time vs. the Musketeers.
Xavier is in the NCAA Tournament after winning the Big East Tournament last week. The Musketeers enter the postseason with a 30-28 record overall and going 14-4 in the Big East. Xavier is hitting .259 as a team with 54 home runs while the team’s pitching staff has posted an ERA of 4.58 with 335 strikeouts over 503.1 innings.
Washington was the runner-up in the Pac-12 this season going 32-21 overall, 17-13 in the conference. The Huskies have hit .282 as a team with 33 homers. The UW pitching staff has recorded a 3.99 team ERA with 348 strikeouts in 480.2 innings.
UC Santa Barbara enters the postseason with a 37-18-1 record out of the Big West, going 13-11 in the league. Vanderbilt has never played UCSB. The Gauchos have hit .260 as a team with 25 home runs with the pitching staff posting a 3.90 ERA with 422 strikeouts across 498.2 innings.
The Nashville Regional is set to begin Friday with the Gauchos and Huskies scheduled for 2 p.m. and the Musketeers and Commodores at 7 p.m.