Even if the season-ending series against Dixie State had gone worse β and it definitely could have β No. 8 Arizona was locked into a top-16 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Confirmation came Sunday evening, when the NCAA revealed the regional hosts.
The question heading into Selection Monday is where the Wildcats will land and whom they will face.
Dropping the middle game against the Trailblazers might end up costing the UA (40-15) a spot or two. The Cats fell from No. 5 to No. 8 in RPI. Baseball America and D1Baseball.com both had Arizona as the No. 4 overall seed entering the weekend. Their early Sunday projections placed the Wildcats sixth and fifth, respectively.
Both publications have Arizona facing Grand Canyon in the regional opener Friday at Hi Corbett Field. The Lopes (39-19) won the Western Athletic Conference Tournament on Saturday.
The UA and GCU met twice during the regular season. The Lopes defeated the Wildcats 5-4 in 10 innings on April 13 in Phoenix. Arizona took the rematch 13-2 on May 4 in Tucson.
Although it took almost everything they had to win the series, struggling vs. Dixie State might help the Wildcats heading into the postseason. The series β which concluded with a 5-4 walk-off win Saturday night β offered a reminder of what can happen if they arenβt at their best.
βA very good reminder,β said freshman Jacob Berry, who drove in the winning run Saturday. βEvery teamβs beatable on any given day. Weβve just got to come prepared.β
Despite their insistence that this past weekend was no different than any other, the Wildcats clearly werenβt as sharp as they would have been against a Pac-12 opponent with greater stakes.
Having already clinched the leagueβs automatic berth last Sunday, Arizona looked sluggish in the series opener vs. Dixie State, a 4-2 win. The Wildcats squandered a 7-3 lead in Game 2, falling 11-9. They trailed the Trailblazers 4-1 Saturday before rallying.
βWe just need to compete, we need to battle, whoever we play in the postseason,β said freshman pitcher TJ Nichols, who threw 4 2/3 innings of one-hit, no-run relief Saturday. βKeep going, keep working.β
UA coach Jay Johnson β who guided Arizona to the 13th 40-win regular season in program history β gave the team the day off Sunday. The Wildcats will gather Monday at Hi Corbett to watch the Selection Show (9 a.m., ESPN2). They will lift weights later in the morning and practice at 6 p.m.
βI want to get them rebooted physically and mentally,β Johnson said.
Arizonaβs starter Garrett Irvin throws in the first inning against Dixie State on Saturday night. UA has won 40 games in a season for the 13th time in program history.
βReady to rollβ
Arizonaβs top two starters, Chase Silseth and Garrett Irvin, arenβt entering the postseason on an upswing. But Johnson isnβt worried about the veteran pitchers, who are two of the top competitors on the team.
Silseth allowed six runs (four earned) in 3 2/3 innings Friday. As Johnson noted, however, very time Silseth has struggled this season, he has responded with a strong outing.
βI had a good conversation with Chase today,β Johnson said Saturday. βWe got in line exactly what he needs to do. I leave the mechanical stuff to (pitching) coach (Nate) Yeskie; the mental stuff, I feel like thatβs where I can help pitchers and players.
βWe had a good talk about his outing (Friday) night and then how to move forward positively from that. Thereβs no doubt heβs gonna be ready to roll.β
Irvin lasted only 2 2/3 innings Saturday, yielding six hits and four runs. But Johnson was OK with Irvinβs evening ending after only 53 pitches. The left-hander had tossed six-plus innings in six of his previous seven starts, throwing over 100 pitches five times.
βIβm actually happy that it turned out the way that it did,β Johnson said. βIβm happy that we won, and Iβm happy his pitch count was under control.β
Berry or Susac?
Pac-12 individual awards will be announced later this week. Two Wildcats are in the running for both Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year.
Berry paces one of the nationβs most potent offenses in home runs (15), RBIs (64) and batting average (.371). He leads the Pac-12 in RBIs and total bases (149).
Fellow freshman Daniel Susac isnβt far behind, posting 12 homers, 59 RBIs and a .344 average. Susac also has caught full time, while Berry mainly has served as the designated hitter.
βIβm not gonna pick,β said their classmate, Nichols, who has known Susac since they were kids. βBoth are phenomenal hitters, phenomenal guys, phenomenal teammates. So either one of them β or hopefully they pick both.β
Berry and Susac are among six Wildcats who rank in the top 10 in the league in hits. Dontaβ Williams, who scored the winning run Saturday, leads the conference in runs (71).
