Short Hops
May 31, 2005 | Baseball
May 31, 2005
NEW ORLEANS, La. - First off, sorry it's been so long since I've written an update, but things have been busy - not only with baseball, but with school as well. At any rate, it's been a very busy and exciting time for Tulane baseball. We wrapped up the regular season C-USA championship, won a share of the C-USA tourney championship, and were rewarded with the No. 1 National Seed all in a matter of a few weeks. But, I believe we all agree that the most exciting part of the season is up ahead.
The Green Wave wrapped up the regular season conference title a few weeks ago with a victory over the TCU Horned Frogs. I was glad that we wrapped it up early in the series so us seniors could enjoy the Senior Day festivities without the pressure of needing a win to claim the title. It was a fun and relaxed day that I will never forget. On behalf of the seniors I would like to thank the many who were there to support us and our families on such a special day. You guys mean so much to us and we thank you.
This past weekend, we followed a marginal victory in the opening round of the C-USA tournament with two slugfest type wins in the two subsequent rounds. Sunday's championship game against TCU, however, was rained out and we shared the title. I know both teams wanted to play badly, but since both teams were confident with there postseason positions, the safety of the players was held higher in the decision-making criteria to cancel the event. Either way, I know the team was happy with our performance in the tourney.
We just found out a few hours ago that we would be hosting the regional that included in-state opponents Southern and UL-Lafayette along with perennial SEC power Alabama. It's shaped up to be one of the toughest Regionals in the country. However, we all know that in order to get to Omaha, we're going to need to knock off some tough teams and we might as well aim to do it sooner than later.
We also found out that we were the No. 1 National Seed in the NCAA tournament, a very flattering honor. I'm so proud of the way our team has shown up to play every game, not taking any teams lightly or taking any days off. We fought hard all year and are very deserving of the No. 1 seed that we were given. At the same time, because of the diversity of this year's field, there are many teams that could beat anyone on any given day. But that won't change with our game plan. We're going to show up and play our game no matter who the opponent, which won't be too hard to concentrate on considering the strength of our regional. Just remember, though, that the team in the other dugout isn't exactly ecstatic about playing the No. 1 team in the nation in a regional either.
Well, with that being said, it's postseason time! I know you all are just as excited about hosting the regional at Turchin as the team is. We love playing there. With all you guys behind us there, it gives us an extra confidence and self-pride when we take the field at Turchin. It's an atmosphere that we relish and opponents dread, quite possibly the biggest home-field advantage in college baseball. So, let's take care of business this weekend and then we'll talk about our next step to Omaha. See you guys at the ballpark. Until next time...
Roll Wave,
Tommy
