Top 25 Tracker (Feb. 29)
The Top 25 Tracker, powered by Louisville Slugger, recaps the weekend action.
1. Florida
Last Week: 4-1
Overall: 7-1, 0-0 in SEC (2-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
The Gators’ ownership of Miami continues. Dominant outings by Logan Shore on Friday (a complete game shutout) and Alex Faedo on Sunday (6 1/3 no-hit innings) paved the way for the Gators to take their annual series from the Hurricanes for the sixth time in seven years.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Eastern Michigan: W 12-4
Feb. 24: Eastern Michigan (@ Lakeland, Fla.): W 8-7
Feb. 26-28: @ (6) Miami: W 5-0, L 5-3, W 7-3
UPCOMING
March 1-2: vs./@ Central Florida
March 4-6: Dartmouth
2. Texas A&M
Last Week: 4-1
Overall: 7-1, 0-0 in SEC (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
Pepperdine snapped the Aggies’ 35-game winning streak in regular-season non-conference games on Friday. A&M responded by pitching back-to-back shutouts for the first time since 2006.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Stephen F. Austin: W 21-1
Feb. 24: Prairie View A&M: W 11-0
Feb. 26-28: @ Pepperdine: L 7-5, W 6-0, W 4-0
UPCOMING
March 1: Houston Baptist
March 4-6: Yale
3. Oregon State
Last Week: 5-0
Overall: 7-1, 0-0 in Pac-12 (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 0-0
The Beavers had to make a late rally to beat Kansas State on Thursday but breezed through the rest of the weekend in Surprise, Ariz., beating Kansas and K-State by a combined 26-4 count over the next three days.
RESULTS
Feb. 22: @ Surprise Tournament 1, Surprise, Ariz.:
Utah: W 10-2
Feb. 25-28: @ Surprise Tournament 2, Surprise, Ariz.:
Kansas State: W 7-5
Kansas State: W 14-0
Kansas: W 9-3
Kansas: W 3-1
UPCOMING
March 4-6: @ San Diego
4. Louisville
Last Week: 2-2
Overall: 5-2, 0-0 in ACC (1-2 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-1
The Cardinals had won seven straight true road series, dating to 2014, but raucous Swayze Field proved too tough to tame. Brendan McKay did pitch them to a win Saturday with his first career shutout.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Eastern Kentucky: W 14-2
Feb. 26-28: @ (21) Mississippi: L 6-5, W 4-0, L 4-2
UPCOMING
March 1: Morehead State
March 4-6: Princeton
5. Vanderbilt
Last Week: 5-0
Overall: 8-0, 0-0 in SEC (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
The Commodores’ offense hummed along, scoring 55 runs in five games. They did have a narrow escape on Saturday, beating Illinois-Chicago on Alonzo Jones’ walk-off walk in the bottom of the 14th.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Tennessee-Martin: W 11-6 (5 innings)
Feb. 24: Eastern Illinois: W 9-1
Feb. 26-28: Illinois-Chicago: W 9-0, W 6-5 (14 innings), W 20-8
UPCOMING
March 1: Tennessee Tech
March 4-6: @ Stanford
6. Miami
Last Week: 2-2
Overall: 5-2, 0-0 in ACC (1-2 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-1
The Canes scored an early knockout against potential No. 1 overall pick A.J. Puk on Saturday, chasing him in the third, but they’ll still have to hear about their struggles against Florida for another year.
RESULTS
Feb. 24: St. Thomas: W 7-6 (10 innings)
Feb. 26-28: (1) Florida: L 5-0, W 5-3, L 7-3
UPCOMING
March 2: Florida Gulf Coast
March 4-6: Manhattan
7. Louisiana State
Last Week: 2-2
Overall: 5-2, 0-0 in SEC (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
It’s been a wobbly first couple weeks at times for the new-look Tigers—they even lost an Alex Lange start on Saturday—but they’ve avoided any major pratfalls in winning series against Cincinnati and now Sacramento State.
RESULTS
Feb. 24: @ Lamar: L 12-11
Feb. 26-28: Sacramento State: W 6-0, L 5-4, W 11-1
UPCOMING
March 2: @ Nicholls State
March 4-5: Fordham
8. Virginia
Last Week: 2-2
Overall: 4-3, 0-0 in ACC (0-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 0-1
Virginia needed a strong start by sophomore Tommy Doyle (7 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO) on Sunday to avoid a sweep at the hands of ECU, after the Cavs lost a ninth inning lead on Friday and were limited to a run on six hits on Saturday.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Virginia Military Institute: W 18-1
Feb. 26-28: East Carolina: L 8-5 (10 innings), L 6-1, W 4-2
UPCOMING
March 1: William & Mary
March 4-6: Monmouth
9. Texas Christian
Last Week: 4-0
Overall: 6-1, 0-0 in Big 12 (20 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-0
Few teams had as loud a weekend as the Horned Frogs did, taking down two ranked teams and breezing through the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic in Houston. The Horned Frogs are young, but they aren’t playing like it.
RESULTS
Feb. 24: Arkansas-Pine Bluff: W 17-3
Feb. 26-28: @ Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic, Houston:
(10) Louisiana-Lafayette: W 7-1
Rice: W 10-0 (7 innings)
(9) Houston: W 10-1
UPCOMING
March 1: Texas-Rio Grande Valley
March 4-6: Gonzaga
10. California
Last Week: 4-0
Overall: 5-2, 0-0 in Pac12 (00 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-1
After playing a tight series at Duke that included two walkoff losses, the Golden Bears rebounded at home against San Francisco and Purdue. The nonconference slate only gets more difficult from here, starting with a Monday battle with Michigan.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: San Francisco: W 5-4.
Feb. 26-28: Purdue: W 10-0, W 4-0, W 15-5
UPCOMING
Feb. 29: (20) Michigan
March 3-6: @ Texas
11. Oregon
Last Week: 3-1
Overall: 6-1, 0-0 in Pac-12 (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
The Ducks received three strong pitching performances from lefthanders Cole Irvin, Matt Krook and David Peterson and cruised to a series win against Illinois State. Oregon will host a tougher opponent next weekend, when UC Santa Barbara rolls into town on the heels of a Tony Gwynn Classic championship.
RESULTS
Feb. 25-28: Illinois State: W 8-5, W 4-2, L 3-2, W 3-1
UPCOMING
March 4-6: UC Santa Barbara
12. North Carolina
Last Week: 3-0
Overall: 5-1, 0-0 in ACC (5-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
The Tar Heels made quite the statement, walking off three straight times against the then-No. 13 Cowboys. They’ve played all six of their games against Top 25 opponents and have lost just once. They’ll need to avoid a let down this week.
RESULTS
Feb. 26-28: (13) Oklahoma State: W 2-1, W 7-6 (10 innings), W 4-3
UPCOMING
March 2: Winthrop
March 4-6: Fairfield
13. Mississippi
Last Week: 3-1
Overall: 6-1, 0-0 in SEC (2-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
Mississippi scored an impressive series victory, upsetting then-No. 2 Louisville over the weekend. Now the Rebels will look to build on that momentum as they hit the road for the first time, travelling to Coastal Carolina for a tournament.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Arkansas State: W 4-3
Feb. 26-28: (2) Louisville: W 6-5, L 4-0, W 4-2
UPCOMING
March 2: vs. Memphis
March 4-6: @ Chanticleer Classic, Conway, S.C.:
Ball State, (19) Coastal Carolina, Cincinnati
14. UCLA
Last Week: 2-2
Overall: 3-4, 0-0 in Pac-12 (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-1
After a difficult first weekend against North Carolina, the Bruins’ bats finally came to life at Cal Poly, pummeling the Mustangs in the first two games of the series. UCLA will need to put all the pieces together against a strong field at the upcoming Dodger Stadium College Baseball Classic.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Long Beach State: L 10-1
Feb. 26-28: @ Cal Poly: W 7-6, W 19-0, L 6-2
UPCOMING
March 1: @ UC Santa Barbara
March 4-5: Dodger Stadium Baseball Classic:
(24) Mississippi State, Oklahoma, Southern California
15. Florida State
Last Week: 2-1
Overall: 5-1, 0-0 in ACC (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
FSU suffered its first loss of the season but quickly regrouped to crush College of Charleston in the final two games of the series. The remainder of FSU’s nonconference schedule is relatively light, with just one game away from Tallahassee.
RESULTS
Feb. 26-28: College of Charleston: L 21, W 83, W 112
UPCOMING
March 1: Jacksonville
March 2: Villanova
March 4-6: St. John’s
16. Louisiana-Lafayette
Last Week: 1-3
Overall: 4-3, 0-0 in Sun Belt (0-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-0
A tough weekend at Minute Maid Park at least ended on a high note for the Cajuns, as Stefan Trosclair hit a dramatic two-run homer off the left field foul pole in the top of the eighth to beat Rice on Sunday night.
RESULTS
Feb. 24: Louisiana Tech: L 6-2
Feb. 26-28: @ Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic, Houston:
(17) Texas Christian: L 7-1
Texas Tech: L 5-3 (10 innings)
Rice: W 4-2
UPCOMING
March 1: New Orleans
March 2: @ McNeese State
March 4-6: Sacred Heart
17. Arkansas
Last Week: 5-0
Overall: 8-0, 0-0 in SEC (1-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-0
The Razorbacks were one of the most impressive teams at the Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic, showing off a powerful offense led by Most Outstanding Player shortstop Michael Bernal. Now it’s back home to Baum Stadium, where coach Dave Van Horn will continue to work out how all the pieces of his pitching staff fit together.
RESULTS
Feb. 23-24: Mississippi Valley State: W 21-4, W 20-0
Feb. 26-28: @ Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic, Houston:
Rice: W 5-2
(9) Houston: W 12-3
Texas Tech: W 10-6
UPCOMING
March 2: Louisiana Tech
March 4-6: Eastern Illinois
18. North Carolina State
Last Week: 3-1
Overall: 5-2, 0-0 in ACC (1-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-0
The powerful Wright State offense gave N.C. State a hard time in the first game, but the Wolfpack didn’t have much difficulty the rest of the way. The next stop is the Irish Classic, where the Wolfpack will have an intriguing matchup with Alabama.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Morehead State: W 7-5
Feb. 24: St. John’s: CCD
Feb. 26-28: Wright State: L 10-8, W 6-1, W 8-4
UPCOMING
March 1: UNC Greensboro
March 2: UNC Wilmington
March 4-6: Irish Classic, Raleigh, N.C.:
Niagara, Alabama (@Cary, N.C.), Bucknell
19. Coastal Carolina
Last Week: 2-1
Overall: 4-2, 0-0 in Big South (1-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 0-0
Hosting the second of a series of tournaments, the Chanticleers came away with another 2-1 weekend, the only loss coming against the Buckeyes. This weekend’s Chanticleer Classic could represent a larger challenge, with Mississippi, Ball State and Cincinnati coming to town.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: @ UNC Wilmington: CCD
Feb. 26-29: Caravelle Resort’s Baseball at the Beach:
Marshall: W 9-3
Ohio State: L 6-4
Duke: W 10-6
UPCOMING
March 4-6: Chanticleer Classic, Conway, S.C.:
Cincinnati, (13) Mississippi, Ball State
20. Michigan
Last Week: 1-2
Overall: 5-2, 0-0 in Big Ten (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-0
After winning their first five games of the season, the Wolverines hit a speed bump against Cal Poly and Santa Clara. It won’t get any easier for Michigan with a matchup set against California on Monday.
RESULTS
Feb. 26-28: Jack Gifford Memorial Tournament, Calif.:
Saint Joseph’s: W 5-1
Cal Poly: L 5-1
Santa Clara: L 5-3
UPCOMING
Feb. 29: @ (10) California
March 2: @ San Jose State
March 3-5: @ UC Davis
21. Houston
Last Week: 1-3
Overall: 4-3, 0-0 in AAC (0-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-0
Still trying to make do without suspended No. 2 starter Seth Romero, the Cougars had a forgettable weekend at Minute Maid Park, dropping a close one to Texas Tech and then getting clobbered by Arkansas and Texas Christian.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: McNeese State: W 14-1
Feb. 26-28: @ Shriners Hospitals for Children College Classic, Houston:
Texas Tech: L 3-2
Arkansas: L 12-3
(17) Texas Christian: L 10-1
UPCOMING
March 1: Texas-San Antonio
March 4-6: Baylor
22. Oklahoma State
Last Week: 0-3
Overall: 2-5, 0-0 in Big 12 (0-3 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 0-1
The Cowboys have lost heartbreaker after heartbreaker this season. All five losses have been decided by one run, and their last four losses have all come via walkoff. The Cowboys will look to rebound with Incarnate Word and Indiana State coming to Stillwater.
RESULTS
Feb. 26-28: @ (20) North Carolina: L 2-1, L 7-6 (10 innings), L 4-3
UPCOMING
March 1-2: Incarnate Word
March 4-6: Indiana State
23. Georgia Tech
Last Week: 4-0
Overall: 7-0, 0-0 in ACC (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 1-0
Georgia Tech won the longest game in school history Wednesday and then took care of business over the weekend, sweeping Maryland-Baltimore County. The Yellow Jackets have one more weekend tuneup before opening conference play at Florida State the following week.
RESULTS
Feb. 24: @ Georgia Southern: W 6-5 (16 innings)
Feb. 26-28: UMBC: W 4-1, W 9-2, W 6-1
UPCOMING
March 1: Georgia State
March 4-6: Western Carolina
24. Mississippi State
Last Week: 4-0
Overall: 6-2, 0-0 in SEC (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 0-0
Mississippi State pitched its way to an undefeated weekend. But after playing their first nine games at home, the Bulldogs will hit the road this weekend for the Dodger Stadium Classic. With three Power Five conference schools on the docket, it will also be a step up in competition.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Memphis: PPD
Feb. 26-28: Mississippi State Tournament, Starkville, Miss.
Massachusetts-Lowell: W 4-2
Nicholls State: W 5-0
Massachusetts-Lowell: W 4-2
Nicholls State: W 8-0
UPCOMING
March 1: Alcorn State
March 4-6: Dodger Stadium Classic:
(14) UCLA, Southern California, Oklahoma
25. East Carolina
Last Week: 3-1
Overall: 6-1, 0-0 in AAC (2-1 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 2-0
East Carolina had lost nine straight to Virginia going into last weekend. But the Pirates went into Charlottesville and took a series from the defending national champions. It was a loud statement for ECU and second-year coach Cliff Godwin to start the season.
RESULTS
Feb. 23 vs. North Carolina A&T: W 11-2
Feb. 26-28: @ (4) Virginia: W 8-5 (10), W 6-1, L 4-2
UPCOMING
March 2: Elon
March 4-6: Keith LeClair Classic, Greenville, N.C.:
Southeastern Louisiana, Tennessee, Maryland
DROPPED OUT
Kentucky
Last Week: 1-2
Overall: 3-3, 0-0 in SEC (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 0-0
The starting rotation is supposed to be one of Kentucky’s strengths this season, but it faltered at the Tony Gwynn Classic. Righthanders Zack Brown and Kyle Cody bookended the Wildcats’ weekend with disappointing starts. Kentucky will look to bounce back this week in its first four home games of the season.
RESULTS
Feb. 26-28: @ Tony Gywnn Classic, San Diego:
UC Santa Barbara: L 11-4
San Diego State: W 6-0
Bryant: L 7-4
UPCOMING
March 2: Austin Peay State
March 4-6: Buffalo
Oklahoma
Last Week: 1-3
Overall: 3-5, 0-0 in Big 12 (0-0 vs. Top 25)
Weekend Series: 0-1-1
For the second straight year, Oklahoma lost a series to Sam Houston State, this time getting swept. It won’t get any easier for the Sooners, as they head west for the Dodger Stadium Classic this weekend.
RESULTS
Feb. 23: Abilene Christian: W 7-1
Feb. 26-28: @ Sam Houston State: L 4-3, L 7-2, L 4-3 (11 innings)
UPCOMING
March 1: Central Arkansas
March 4-6: @ Dodger Stadium Classic, Los Angeles:
Southern California, (14) UCLA, (24) Mississippi State
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