The 2008 College World Series was held June 14th through June 25th, 2008 in Omaha, Nebraska. Eight NCAA Division I college baseball teams met after having played their way through a 64-team bracket to play at historic Rosenblatt Stadium. It was the 62nd College World Series overall, and the 59th to be held in Omaha.
The Series was won by Fresno State, who became the lowest ranked team ever to win an NCAA Baseball Championship (or any NCAA Championship in any sport ever), and the fifth consecutive baseball team to win the title that was not one of the eight national seeds.
Fresno State sophomore third baseman Tommy Mendonca won the Most Outstanding Player Award. Tommy hit four home runs and had 11 RBIs and also made a number of spectacular plays in the field.
Changes for 2008
The first day of the 2008 CWS was moved to Saturday (June 14) from the traditional Friday. Also, if all games were needed in the first double-elimination round, it would take eight days to complete rather than seven.
The NCAA cited the need to be more flexible in the super-regional round in case of inclement weather. It also allowed for greater potential ticket revenue, in part because the extra "if-necessary" day would now be ticketed separately if both games are played.[1]
Game 1 of the best-of-three championship series was scheduled for Monday, June 23, game 2 for Tuesday, June 24 and game 3 if necessary for Wednesday, June 25.
Participants
| School | Conference | Record (Conference) | Head Coach | CWS Appearances | CWS Best Finish | CWS Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford | Pac-10 | 39 - 22 - 2 (14 - 10) | Mark Marquess | 15 (last: 2003) |
1st (1987, 1988) |
38 - 27 |
| North Carolina | ACC | 51 - 12 (22 - 7) | Mike Fox | 6 (last: 2007) |
2nd (2006, 2007) |
10 - 13 |
| Florida State | ACC | 54 - 12 (24 - 6) | Mike Martin | 18 (last: 2000) |
2nd (1970, 1986, 1999) |
25 - 36 |
| Georgia | SEC | 41 - 23 - 1 (20 - 9 - 1) | David Perno | 5 (last: 2006) |
1st (1990) |
6 - 9 |
| Miami (FL) | ACC | 52 - 9 (23 - 5) | Jim Morris | 22 (last: 2006) |
1st (1982, 1985, 1999, 2001) |
46 - 36 |
| Rice | C-USA | 47 - 13 (21 - 3) | Wayne Graham | 6 (last: 2007) |
1st (2003) |
10 - 11 |
| Louisiana State | SEC | 48 - 17 - 1 (18 - 11 - 1) | Paul Mainieri | 13 (last: 2004) |
1st (1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000) |
29 - 17 |
| Fresno State | WAC | 42 - 29 (21 - 11) | Mike Batesole | 3 (last: 1991) |
3rd (1959) |
4 - 6 |
Tournament Notes
Bracket and standings
2008 College World Series bracket
The teams in the CWS are divided into two pools of four, with each pool playing a double-elimination format. The winners of the two pools meet in a best-of-three finals.
| First round | Second round | Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Miami | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Georgia | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Georgia | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||
| — | Stanford | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||
| — | Stanford | 16 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Florida State | 5 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Georgia | 10 | -- | ||||||||||||||||||
| — | Stanford | 8 | -- | ||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Miami | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Florida State | 5 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Miami | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||
| — | Stanford | 8 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Georgia | 7 | 10 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| — | Fresno State | 6 | 19 | 6 | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | North Carolina | 8 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | LSU | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | North Carolina | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||
| — | Fresno State | 5 | |||||||||||||||||||
| — | Fresno State | 17 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Rice | 5 | |||||||||||||||||||
| — | Fresno State | 3 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | North Carolina | 4 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | LSU | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Rice | 5 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 7 | LSU | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | North Carolina | 7 | |||||||||||||||||||
Final CWS standings
| Place | School | CWS Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Fresno State | 5-2 |
| 2nd |
Georgia |
4-2 |
| 3rd | North Carolina | 3-2 |
| Stanford | 2-2 | |
| 5th | LSU | 1-2 |
| Miami | 1-2 | |
| 7th | Florida State | 0-2 |
| Rice | 0-2 |
Results
All times CDT.
Saturday, June 14
Game 1, 1:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford (1-0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 16 | 15 | 1 |
| #4 Florida State (0-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 3 |
Starting pitchers: Stanford – Jeremy Bleich (3-2) FSU – Matt Fairel (12-2) WP: Drew Storen (4-3) LP: John Gast (0-0)
HRs: Stanford – Gerhart, Milleville FSU – Guinn, Stidham
Game 2, 6:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #8 Georgia (1-0) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 1 |
| #1 Miami (0-1) | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 1 |
Starting pitchers: UGA – Trever Holder (8-4) Miami – Chris Hernandez (11-0) WP: Josh Fields (2-2) LP: Carlos Gutierrez (5-3)
HRs: UGA – Peisel Miami – Weeks, Tekotte, Alonso
Sunday, June 15
Game 3, 1:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fresno State (1-0) | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 13 | 2 |
| #6 Rice (0-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 1 |
Starting pitchers: Fresno – Justin Wilson (7-5) Rice – Ryan Berry (8-4) WP: Justin Wilson(7-5) LP: Ryan Berry (8-4)
HRs: Fresno – Berry, Evers, Langwell, Bell Rice – Comerota
Game 4, 6:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #7 LSU (0-1) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 1 |
| #2 North Carolina (1-0) | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | x | 8 | 17 | 0 |
Starting pitchers: LSU – Ryan Verdugo (9-4) UNC – Alex White (11-3) WP: Alex White(11-3) LP: Ryan Verdugo(9-4) SV: Rob Wooten(5)
HRs: LSU – M Hollander,M Clark
Monday, June 16
Game 5, 1:00 PM (elimination)
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #4 Florida State (0-2) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 18 | 0 |
| #1 Miami (1-1) | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | x | 7 | 11 | 2 |
Starting pitchers: FSU – Elih Villanueva (7-3) Miami – David Gutierrez (5-0) WP: Eric Erickson (9-1) LP: Elih Villanueva (7-4)
HRs: Miami – J. Weeks (13, 3rd inning off E. Villanueva 1 on, 1 out); B. Tekotte (13, 8th inning off G. Parker 0 on, 0 out)
Game 6, 6:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford (1-1) | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| #8 Georgia (2-0) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | x | 4 | 9 | 0 |
Starting pitchers: Stanford – Jeffrey Inman (7-2) UGA – Nick Montgomery (4-2) WP: A. Mcree LP: A. Yount SV: J. Fields
HRs: Stanford – J. Castro (14, 3rd inning off of Nick Montgomery, 1 on, 2 out)
Tuesday, June 17
Game 7, 1:00 PM (elimination)
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #6 Rice (0-2) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 3 |
| #7 LSU (1-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 11 | 0 |
Starting pitchers: Rice – Chris Kelley (5-1) LSU – Jared Bradford (10-4) WP: Louis Coleman (8-0) LP: Cole St. Clair (10-3)
HRs: Rice – A. Luna (10, 6th inning off J. Bradford 0 on, 0 out)
Game 8, 6:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #2 North Carolina (1-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 11 | 1 |
| Fresno State (2-0) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | x | 5 | 13 | 1 |
Starting pitchers: Fresno – Justin Miller (6-3) UNC – Adam Warren (9-1) WP: Jason Breckley (3-2) LP: Adam Warren (9-2) SV: Brandon Burke (13)
HRs: UNC – R. Overland (4, 2nd inning off A. Warren 0 on, 0 out); S. Susdorf (12, 4th inning off A. Warren 0 on, 0 out)
Wednesday, June 18
Game 9, 6:00 PM (elimination)
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 Miami (1-2) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 9 | 2 |
| Stanford (2-1) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | x | 8 | 11 | 0 |
Starting pitchers: Miami – Enrique Garcia (7-2) Stanford – Danny Sandbrink (2-1) WP: Erik Davis (7-3) LP: Enrique Garcia (7-2)
HRs: Miami – Yasmani Grandal Stanford – Sean Ratliff
Friday, June 20
Game 10, 6:00 PM (elimination)
- Game initially scheduled on Thursday, June 19, but was postponed due to a rainout
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #2 North Carolina (2-1) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 9 | 2 |
| #7 LSU (1-2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 0 |
Saturday, June 21
Game 11, 1:00 PM (Bracket final series)
- An Elimination game if Georgia wins
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #8 Georgia (3-0) | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 15 | 2 |
| Stanford (2-2) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 11 | 0 |
Starting pitchers: UGA – Nathan Moreau (4-3) Stanford – Jeremy Bleich (3-2) WP: Dean Weaver (5-1) LP: Jeremy Bleich (3-3)
HRs: UGA – Ryan Peisel (12) Stanford – Ben Clowe (3)
Game 12, 6:00 PM (Bracket final series)
- An Elimination game if Fresno State wins
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fresno State (2-1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 |
| #2 North Carolina (3-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | x | 4 | 8 | 0 |
Sunday, June 22 (Bracket final series)
Game 13, 6:00 PM
- Both teams have one loss; therefore, loser eliminated, and winner advance to play Georgia in the Best-of-Three Championship Series
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #2 North Carolina (3-2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 1 |
| Fresno State (3-1) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | x | 6 | 10 | 0 |
Starting pitchers: Fresno – C Allison UNC – A Warren WP: C Allison LP: A Warren
Championship Series
- Best-of-three series to determine NCAA Division I Champion
Monday, June 23
Game 14, 6:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fresno State (3-2), (0-1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 7 | 0 |
| #8 Georgia (4-0), (1-0) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | x | 7 | 10 | 1 |
Starting pitchers: Fresno – Sean Bonesteele (2-2) UGA – Trevor Holder (8-4) WP: Brandon Burke (4-5) LP: Will Harvil (1-1) SV: Joshua Fields (18)
HRs: Fresno – Steve Detwiler (10; 2 runs, 0 outs, top of 5th), Tommy Mendonca (18; Solo, 2 out, top of 8th), Jordan Ribera (5; Solo, 0 out, top of 3rd) UGA – Gordan Beckham (27; 2 runs, 0 out, bottom 8th)
Tuesday, June 24
Game 15, 6:35 PM
- An Elimination game for Fresno State
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #8 Georgia (4-1), (1-1) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 15 | 0 |
| Fresno State (4-2), (1-1) | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | x | 19 | 19 | 3 |
Wednesday, June 25
Game 16, 6:00 PM
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fresno State (5-2), (2-1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 8 | 4 |
| #8 Georgia (4-2), (1-2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 2 |
Starting pitchers: Fresno – Justin Wilson (8-5) UGA – Nathan Moreau (4-3)
All Tournament Team
The following players were members of the All-Tournament Team.
| Position | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| Pitcher | Alex White | North Carolina |
| Justin Wilson | Fresno St. | |
| Catcher | Jason Castro | Stanford |
| First Base | Dustin Ackley | North Carolina |
| Second Base | Erik Wetzel | Fresno St. |
| Third Base | Tommy Mendonca | Fresno St. |
| Shortstop | Gordon Beckham | Georgia |
| Outfield | Tim Fedroff | North Carolina |
| Steve Susdorf | Fresno St. | |
| Steve Detwiler | Fresno St. | |
| Designated Hitter | Ryan Peisel | Georgia |
Notable Players
Chicago White Sox third baseman Gordan Beckham who played the following year in the majors
CWS records tied or broken
- Most runs scored in an inning: 11 (tied)(Stanford, 9th inning, Game 1 against Florida State)
- Most runners left on base in a nine-inning game: 17 (tied) (Florida State, Game 5 against Miami)
- Most doubles hit by a player: 3 (tied) by Rich Poythress Georgia against Stanford, Game 11.
- Most losses by a team who won the College World Series: 31 (Fresno State)
- Lowest seed to win the College World Series: #4 regional seed, #89 RPI (Fresno State)
CWS Leaders
Team
Individual
Post-Series Notes
Television and radio
ESPN and ESPN2 showed every game of the tournament on television, except on Sunday June 22 due to the postponement of game 10 which forced the networks to utilize ESPN Classic. They were also streamed online at ESPN360.com. Westwood One had live radio coverage of the championship series.
See also
- 2008 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament
- NCAA Division I Baseball Championship
- 2008 LSU Tigers baseball team
- 2008 Fresno State Bulldogs baseball team
External links
References
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