The 2026 NCAA baseball tournament began today with regional play. The 32 games had a little bit of everything, and it was a great day of baseball.
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1 Seeds Upset
St. Mary’s upset the top seed in the tournament as they beat UCLA 3-2. The Gaels hit a home run in the top of the ninth to stun the Bruins and force them to the loser’s bracket, facing elimination tomorrow. Milwaukee started the day off beating host Auburn as they led 10-0 at one point. The Panthers came away with a 13-8 win, pushing Auburn to the losers’ bracket. Fourth-seeded Little Rock beat host Southern Miss 7-4 in the Hattiesburg Regional, doing so with a four-run ninth inning. Florida State also lost to St. John’s 6-5. Florida State had a 5-2 lead after six, but the last two innings saw St. John’s score four runs, with the final one coming in the top of the ninth. The Seminoles will now fight to keep their tournament lives going.
Florida Survives Scare
Gainesville Regional host, Florida, which led 4-0 through the first six innings, then Rider jumped in front in the seventh, scoring six runs. The six runs came off home runs, a grand slam, and two solo shots. Florida then took the lead back in the eighth, but Rider would tie it at the top of the ninth. Brendon Lawson would walk it off for the Gators as they survive the scare to win 8-7.
Georgia Tech, Georgia, and Alabama Make A Statement
The Yellow Jackets throttled UIC, winning 22-5. The third-ranked prospect heading into the MLB draft, Vahn Lackey, crushed a 456-foot home run. Georgia Tech had seven home runs in the game, with Alex Hernandez hitting three of them. The Yellow Jackets went down 2-0, then they scored 17 unanswered runs.
Georgia is the third overall seed in the tournament, and in their first game, they showed why as they came out rolling leading 15-1 over Long Island but the game was called due to rain. They scored six in the third, two in the fourth, five in the fifth, and two in the sixth.
Alabama came out and put up 21 runs in their first game of the tournament. The top four hitters in Alabama’s lineup combined to go 8-15 with 11 RBI, and seven runs scored in the win. Bryce Fowler finished a double shy of the cycle and Brady Neal finished a triple shy of the cycle.
Anthony Pack Jr. Drives Texas
The Texas Longhorns slugged their way past Holy Cross today, 19-1. Freshman Anthony Pack Jr. went 3-3 with three home runs, five RBI, and four runs scored. He would walk in his other at-bat. They had six home runs in the game, with Jayden Duplantier hitting a grand slam and Aidan Robbins hitting two of his own.
Kansas Hosts First Regional in School History
Kansas won their first Regional that they’ve hosted in school history with a 6-3 win over Northeastern. They will face Arkansas as they look to continue their winning ways.
Pitchers Duel in Chapel Hill
Tennessee and East Carolina were locked in a pitcher’s duel as it was 2-2 after nine innings. The game went to extra innings, where the final score was 7-3 with East Carolina coming out on top. The issue both teams face now is that the arms they used today were unexpected, and now they’ll have to navigate the games tomorrow under a new game plan. The Volunteers have to do so with the risk of going home if they lose.
Kentucky vs. Wake Forest Game of the Day
Kentucky came out on top 6-5 in the game, but it was back and forth. Wake Forest led 3-0 after four before the Wild Cats got on the board, but Kentucky would then lead 5-3 after six. Wake Forest tied it in the eighth at 5-5. On one of the home runs, there was a jarring between the batter and the first baseman. Kentucky would score in the top of the ninth to take the win. If these two teams were to meet again, it would be another great game.
Late Rain
Some games dealt with delays or were postponed to Saturday. Coastal Carolina and Northern Illinois played during rain. Miami and Troy were delayed until 10:15 PM EST. Georgia and Long Island was suspended. Oklahoma and The Citadel will be played at 10:00 AM after they were rained out Friday. UCF and NC State was suspended as well.
Late Night Walk-Off
Late in the night while everyone was sleeping Ole Miss walked off Arizona State. Arizona State trailing 6-3 would score one in the fifth and two in the seventh to tie the game at six. The game went to the 14th where the Rebels had the bases loaded and they got a single to win it. They’ll face Nebraska in the winner’s bracket.
