Friday, May 31
Corvallis, Ore.
3:00 PM
Creighton University
vs
Michigan
Photo by: Dave Weigel
Baseball Opens Corvallis Regional with Michigan on Friday
5/29/2019 1:45:00 AM | Baseball
Omaha, Neb. -- Returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012, the Creighton Baseball team will attempt to reach a Super Regional for the first time in program history this weekend in Corvallis, Oregon. Creighton enters the regional as the two-seed and will begin action on Friday, May 31 against Michigan at 3:00 pm (CT).
Download the complete preview (PDF).
Baseball Ranked In All Six Polls
The Creighton Baseball team is ranked in all six major national polls heading into the NCAA Tournament, including two polls for the first time this season.
The Bluejays are 22nd in the polls published by D1Baseball, NCBWA and Perfect Game, and 23rd in the Baseball America and USA Today Coaches polls. The Bluejays are also up to 27th in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll. It's CU's first inclusion in the USA Today Coaches poll and the Perfect Game poll this spring.
Creighton's first opponent in the NCAA Tournament, Michigan, is receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches poll as well as the NCBWA rankings. Oregon State, which will host the Corvallis Regional this weekend, ranges from 12-16 in the various polls this weekend.
With a 38-11 overall record, the Bluejays sit at No. 23 in the NCAA RPI. The Bluejays begin the NCAA Tournament in Corvallis, Ore., on Friday, May 31, when it takes on the
Wolverines in a game set for 3 p.m. Central that can be viewed on WatchESPN.
Offense Became Contagious in Mason
Creighton got production up-and-down the line-up in three games at the BIG EAST Championship, pounding out 46 hits, 36 runs and 10 home runs.As a team, Creighton hit .400 with an on-base percentage of .496 and a .739 slugging percentage.
Digging the Long Ball
Creighton owns 60 home runs this season after tying a BIG EAST Championships record with 10 long balls last weekend. On the season, Creighton 23-3 when hitting at least one round-tripper.
Since March 16th, Creighton is 22-1 in games in which it has hit a home run.
Bluejays Mastered Falling Behind, But Just for an Inning
Creighton surrendered at least one run in the first inning in all three games at the BIG EAST Championship, only to rally each time with a multiple-run inning of its own to reclaim the lead.
Creighton has now scored multiple times in the first inning in each of its last four games, extending its win streak to 13 games when
posting a crooked number in the opening inning.
On the season, Creighton has outscored the opposition 50-20 in the first inning. The Bluejays have won each of their last nine games when scoring in the first inning, and are 21-3 overall this year when touching the plate in the first frame.
Strunc Brings Home Most Outstanding Player
Senior Jack Strunc won the Jack Kaiser Award as the Most Outstanding Player of the 2019 BIG EAST Championship, etching his name along side former league greats like Todd Frazier (Rutgers, 2007) and Mo Vaughn (Seton Hall, 1987), among others.
Strunc hit .643 (9-for-14) during the BIG EAST Championship with an on-base percentage of .688 and a 1.000 slugging percentage while playing errorless ball as the Bluejay shortstop. Strunc's grand slam in the first inning of the championship game gave Creighton the lead for good and helped the Bluejays rebound from an early 3-0 deficit.
Base Larceny Can Lead to Gold
One big focal point at the Corvallis Regional is sure to be the stolen base. Creighton is second in the BIG EAST with 55 stolen bases. CU is 32-5 this year in games in which it has attempted a stolen base, and 25-1 since March 17th.
Michigan led the Big Ten with 88 stolen bases in 110 chances (80 percent), including 8-of-9 in five games last weekend at the Big Ten Tournament.
Cincinnati was second in the American Athletic Conference with 87 stolen bases and was successful at an 80.6 percent clip. When Scott Googins was head coach at Xavier, all four of his BIG EAST teams ranked in the top two in the conference in stolen bases.
Oregon State was seventh in the Pac-12 with 35 stolen bases, but allowed just 19 stolen bases in 36 attempts over the course of 55 games. All-American catcher Adley Rutschman threw out 13-of-26 runners attempting to steal.
Meggs Delivering in a Pinch
Andrew Meggs has developed into one of the most potent weapons off the bench in the country. The redshirt freshman owns six pinch hits, two more than any other player in the BIG EAST Conference. Meggs' six pinch hits are also two more than any other player in the Corvallis Regional.
Download the complete preview (PDF).
NCAA Tournament
@ Goss Stadium
vs. Michigan
May 31 @ 3:00 pm
Live Stats: https//www.ncaa.com/game/baseball/d1/2019/05/31/michigan-creighton
Watch Online: Friday - ESPN3 - http://watchespn.com
@ Goss Stadium
vs. Michigan
May 31 @ 3:00 pm
Live Stats: https//www.ncaa.com/game/baseball/d1/2019/05/31/michigan-creighton
Watch Online: Friday - ESPN3 - http://watchespn.com
Baseball Ranked In All Six Polls
The Creighton Baseball team is ranked in all six major national polls heading into the NCAA Tournament, including two polls for the first time this season.
The Bluejays are 22nd in the polls published by D1Baseball, NCBWA and Perfect Game, and 23rd in the Baseball America and USA Today Coaches polls. The Bluejays are also up to 27th in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll. It's CU's first inclusion in the USA Today Coaches poll and the Perfect Game poll this spring.
Creighton's first opponent in the NCAA Tournament, Michigan, is receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches poll as well as the NCBWA rankings. Oregon State, which will host the Corvallis Regional this weekend, ranges from 12-16 in the various polls this weekend.
With a 38-11 overall record, the Bluejays sit at No. 23 in the NCAA RPI. The Bluejays begin the NCAA Tournament in Corvallis, Ore., on Friday, May 31, when it takes on the
Wolverines in a game set for 3 p.m. Central that can be viewed on WatchESPN.
Offense Became Contagious in Mason
Creighton got production up-and-down the line-up in three games at the BIG EAST Championship, pounding out 46 hits, 36 runs and 10 home runs.As a team, Creighton hit .400 with an on-base percentage of .496 and a .739 slugging percentage.
Digging the Long Ball
Creighton owns 60 home runs this season after tying a BIG EAST Championships record with 10 long balls last weekend. On the season, Creighton 23-3 when hitting at least one round-tripper.
Since March 16th, Creighton is 22-1 in games in which it has hit a home run.
Bluejays Mastered Falling Behind, But Just for an Inning
Creighton surrendered at least one run in the first inning in all three games at the BIG EAST Championship, only to rally each time with a multiple-run inning of its own to reclaim the lead.
Creighton has now scored multiple times in the first inning in each of its last four games, extending its win streak to 13 games when
posting a crooked number in the opening inning.
On the season, Creighton has outscored the opposition 50-20 in the first inning. The Bluejays have won each of their last nine games when scoring in the first inning, and are 21-3 overall this year when touching the plate in the first frame.
Strunc Brings Home Most Outstanding Player
Senior Jack Strunc won the Jack Kaiser Award as the Most Outstanding Player of the 2019 BIG EAST Championship, etching his name along side former league greats like Todd Frazier (Rutgers, 2007) and Mo Vaughn (Seton Hall, 1987), among others.
Strunc hit .643 (9-for-14) during the BIG EAST Championship with an on-base percentage of .688 and a 1.000 slugging percentage while playing errorless ball as the Bluejay shortstop. Strunc's grand slam in the first inning of the championship game gave Creighton the lead for good and helped the Bluejays rebound from an early 3-0 deficit.
Base Larceny Can Lead to Gold
One big focal point at the Corvallis Regional is sure to be the stolen base. Creighton is second in the BIG EAST with 55 stolen bases. CU is 32-5 this year in games in which it has attempted a stolen base, and 25-1 since March 17th.
Michigan led the Big Ten with 88 stolen bases in 110 chances (80 percent), including 8-of-9 in five games last weekend at the Big Ten Tournament.
Cincinnati was second in the American Athletic Conference with 87 stolen bases and was successful at an 80.6 percent clip. When Scott Googins was head coach at Xavier, all four of his BIG EAST teams ranked in the top two in the conference in stolen bases.
Oregon State was seventh in the Pac-12 with 35 stolen bases, but allowed just 19 stolen bases in 36 attempts over the course of 55 games. All-American catcher Adley Rutschman threw out 13-of-26 runners attempting to steal.
Meggs Delivering in a Pinch
Andrew Meggs has developed into one of the most potent weapons off the bench in the country. The redshirt freshman owns six pinch hits, two more than any other player in the BIG EAST Conference. Meggs' six pinch hits are also two more than any other player in the Corvallis Regional.
Players Mentioned
INF
/ Baseball
INF
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