Evansville’s pesky Purple Aces won their first NCAA regional title on Monday, and their reward is a weekend trip to the nation’s No. 1 seed Tennessee for the next round.
They didn’t worry about what happened next. They were too busy celebrating the biggest win in the program’s 100-year history.
After a 13-run loss to East Carolina on Sunday, Evansville became the ninth No. 4 seed since 1999 to reach the super regional with a 6-5 win over the 16th-ranked Pirates at home in Greenville, North Carolina. .
Florida, Oregon State and LSU also closed regions Monday. UConn met Oklahoma in a winner-takes-all final on Monday night.
The 3-on-8 Super Regionals are held on Friday and Saturday. The NCAA will announce the schedule and host games on Tuesday, but typically higher seeded teams play on their home fields.
Matchups featuring national seeds: Evansville (38-24) vs. No. 1 Tennessee (53-11); No. 9 Oklahoma (40-20) or UConn (34-24) vs. No. 8 Florida State (45-15) vs. Kansas State (35-24). No. 12 Virginia (44-15); West Virginia (36-22) vs. No. 4 North Carolina (44-14); No. 15 Oregon State (45-14) vs. No. 2 Kentucky (43-14); No. 10 North Carolina State (36-20) vs. No. 7 Georgia State (42-15); Florida (32-28) vs. No. 6 Clemson (44-14); Oregon (40-18) vs. No. 3 Texas A&M (47-13).
Mark Shallenberger’s three-run home run in the sixth inning gave Evansville the lead over East Carolina, and relievers Max Hansman and Shane Harris combined to hold the Pirates to one hit and one walk.
Coach Wes Carroll said the program’s milestone win was achieved through recent facility upgrades, recruiting and strong administrative support. It was especially touching for Carroll, who grew up 15 minutes from campus and played for the Aces from 1998 to 2001 before becoming their head coach in 2009.
“John Stanley hired me and gave an opportunity to a 28-year-old guy who believed in this place,” Carroll said, referring to his former athletic director. “Sixteen years have passed. It was a very enjoyable journey thanks to the people I was able to work with. Over the past five or six years, I’ve really hit it off with people who care about me and care about our baseball program, and we’re starting to build something. We made people believe in the vision.”
Florida earned its second win over the Cowboys in two days, beating No. 11 Oklahoma State 4-2. The Gators continued their improbable late-season run, and Oklahoma State failed to advance to the host regional for the third straight year.
The Gators needed a winning record to qualify for an NCAA at-large bid, and secured that requirement with a win at Georgia on the final day of the regular season. They went head-to-head in the SEC Tournament and headed to Stillwater, Oklahoma as the region’s No. 3 seed.
The Gators have won their third straight game since losing 7-1 to the Cowboys on Saturday, and the 2023 national runner-up has now advanced to the Super for the second straight year.
“The mood has changed a little bit,” Florida Two-Way star Jac Caglianone said. “Everyone was excited and had fun playing baseball. We deviated from that a little bit. “We found that spark once again and it showed today.”
Oregon State University beat UC Irvine 11-6 in a game that resumed Monday after a rain-related suspension in the fourth inning Sunday night. Elijah Hainline homered and drove in three runs for the Beavers, who advanced for the second time in three years.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
