OMAHA, Neb. – In a season marked by remarkable consistency and skill, UCLA has been awarded the No. 1 seed for the NCAA Tournament, a fitting recognition for their dominant performance throughout the regular season.
The tournament will kick off on Friday, featuring 16 double-elimination regionals. The victorious teams from these regionals will then compete in eight best-of-three super regionals, ultimately leading to the prestigious College World Series in Omaha, which begins on June 12.
“The committee believed this year’s championship field was deep and very balanced from top to bottom,” stated Michael Alford, chair of the NCAA selection committee and athletic director at Florida State. He emphasized that decisions were made based on a comprehensive assessment of each team’s performance rather than isolated statistics, demonstrating a commitment to fairness across all conferences.
UCLA boasts an impressive record of 51 wins and only 6 losses, having swept both the Big Ten Conference regular season and tournament titles. They were consistently ranked No. 1 by Baseball America throughout the season, entering the regionals with the most wins since Tennessee’s 53 in 2022.
The Bruins are led by standout players, including ace pitcher Logan Reddeman and closer Ethan Hawk, both of whom rank among the nation’s elite. The team has achieved a collective 3.31 ERA. Additionally, shortstop Roch Cholowsky is projected to be the top pick in the upcoming Major League Baseball amateur draft, and along with Will Gasparino and Big Ten Tournament MVP Mulivai Levu, they have combined for an impressive 57 home runs this season.
Georgia Tech, with a record of 48-9, follows closely behind UCLA. The Yellow Jackets have showcased the nation’s most formidable offense, leading Division I in scoring with an average of 10.8 runs per game, as well as in batting average (.358) and slugging percentage (.636). Key players Jarren Advincula and Vahn Lackey are among the nation’s top hitters, batting .431 and .410, respectively.
Other notable national seeds include Georgia (46-12), Auburn (38-19), North Carolina (45-11-1), Texas (40-13), Alabama (37-19), and Florida (39-19). Teams seeded in the top eight, should they win their respective regionals, will secure the opportunity to host a super regional.
Seeds nine through sixteen comprise Southern Mississippi (44-15), Florida State (38-17), Oregon (40-16), Texas A&M (39-14), Nebraska (42-15), Mississippi State (40-17), Kansas (42-16), and West Virginia (39-14).
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) led the selection process with 12 teams making the cut, while the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) secured nine spots. Other conferences represented include the Big 12 with six, the Sun Belt with five, and the Big Ten with four.
The final four teams to receive at-large bids were Liberty (41-19), Kentucky (31-21), Texas State (36-24), and Troy (32-29). Conversely, teams that narrowly missed out included Mercer (44-15), Michigan (34-24), Pittsburgh (33-24), and TCU (33-21).
Notably, LSU (30-28), who won the national championship in 2025, has become the seventh program since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1999 to not qualify for regionals the following year.
Texas holds the record for the most NCAA tournament appearances at 65, with Miami following closely with 51. Florida State has now hosted a regional for an impressive 38 times.
Florida boasts the longest active streak with 18 consecutive appearances, followed by Oklahoma State (13), Southern Mississippi (10), and a trio of teams—East Carolina, North Carolina, and Oregon State—each with eight. Notably, Vanderbilt (33-25) will be absent from the regionals after a remarkable streak of 19 consecutive appearances.
In an exciting development, Tarleton State, the Western Athletic Conference champion, marks its first-time participation in the NCAA tournament. The Texans transitioned to Division I in 2021 and were ineligible for the tournament when they claimed the WAC title in 2024, with their last postseason appearance dating back to the 2018 Division II tournament.
South Dakota State, despite a 24-31 record, is making its second regional appearance—its first since 2013—after winning the four-team Summit League Tournament as the No. 4 seed. Similarly, Holy Cross (25-28) has advanced to back-to-back regionals for the first time since 1962-63 after winning the Patriot League Tournament.
Horizon League champion Milwaukee enters its first regional in 16 years with a record of 25-31, showcasing the unpredictable and thrilling nature of college baseball.
___
