NCAA Regional Profile: #7 National Seed Georgia hosts in Athens, GA

(NCAA photo/CBC image)

By College Baseball Central writers Micah Beutell, Bo Carter, Noah Darling, Caleb Donnelley, Mark Garland, Andrew Kube, Doug Kyle, Jake Mastroianni, Jake McKeever, Andrew Riedell, and Colton Watson

Host: Georgia Bulldogs (Foley Field)

1. Georgia (42-15, 18-12 Southeastern Conference)

2. Duke (37-19, 17-13 Atlantic Coast Conference)

3. Oklahoma State (28-23, 15-12 Big 12 Conference)

4. Binghamton (29-24, 13-11 America East Conference)

#1 Georgia

RPI* 2  SOS 4  Record vs Q1: 13-11 Q2: 8-1

The job Head Coach Wes Johnson has done at Georgia in such a short time is truly remarkable. After winning over 40 games in his first season with the Bulldogs and hosting the Athens regional, he proved it was no fluke in 2025 by putting up similar results. And he’s still yet to build a dominant pitching staff, which was his calling card as an assistant.

It looked like that would be the case this year, but many of his top starters were injured coming in – namely Charlie Goldstein, JT Quinn, and Kolten Smith. And his top returner in the rotation, Leighton Finley, had several ups-and-downs throughout the year.

Brian Curley was their top arm out of the bullpen to begin the season, but Johnson ultimately moved him to the rotation and that settled things there. Curley finished the regular season with a 3.21 ERA and 0.97 WHIP in 61.2 innings with 78 strikeouts. 

In the end, the Bulldogs finished 12th in the SEC with a 4.86 ERA, but it wasn’t for a lack of stuff as they had a staff K/9 of 11.15. Their biggest issue on the mound was the free passes with a 4.73 BB/9 (third worst in the SEC).

The offense really carried Georgia early, as Johnson tried to figure out the pitching staff. They finished with the third highest slugging percentage in SEC games, thanks to a conference-high 69 home runs. Overall, they led the country with 132 home runs during the regular season.

It was also a very patient offense drawing 290 walks, turning those home runs into two and three-run shots. Transfer Robbie Burnett took charge offensively this season hitting .318 with a 1.224 OPS in the regular season to go along with 12 doubles, 20 home runs, 66 RBI, and 17 stolen bases. Key returning players Slate Alford, Kolby Branch, and Tre Phelps had big years as well.

But it was Ryland Zaborowski that really transformed the lineup, hitting .376 with a 1.312 OPS, 16 home runs, and 60 RBI in 41 games. Unfortunately, he got hurt mid-way through the SEC slate and the offense suffered. 

How does Georgia win the regional? Last year, there was the feeling of, “I’m glad we’re in this spot.” This year, it will be all business as they try to make a deep run. The committee did them no favors by placing hot-finishing Oklahoma State and season-long fringe-Top 25 team Duke in the Athens Regional, but their offensive park should lend itself to the firepower Johnson has collected in his short time at Georgia.

At home, they were 29-4 this year, so no tinkering or manipulations of the lineup or their approach should be necessary. They may struggle if opponents can cut down on the walks and keep Georgia’s home runs  to solo shots.

#2 Duke

RPI* 31  SOS 38  Record vs Q1: 5-11 Q2: 8-3

Duke did not have the start to the season they might’ve hoped for, but as we all know, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish the season. Duke ended the regular season 14-6 in their last 20 games of the season, and played themselves into a bye in the ACC Tournament.

Duke got big contributions from Sophomore AJ Gracia late in the season to kind of bolster this offense into one of the more dangerous lineups in the country right now. Gracia finished the season with a 130 wRC+, which led Duke. Another leader in this Duke lineup is none other than First Team All-ACC 3rd baseman Ben Miller. Miller ended the season with 18 home runs, which was good enough for a 4-way tie for the Home Run Crown in the ACC.

Duke is led by their offense with five guys having an OPS over .950. For Duke to win this regional, they’re simply going to have to out-hit their competition in this regional, which they can easily do. We’ve seen teams get hot before and have timely hitting in games to put them over the top.

Guys like Gracia and Miller will certainly have to continue their hitting ways for the Blue Devils to be victorious. Don’t overlook the rest of this lineup, however; Jake Hyde, who made All-ACC 2nd Team along with Gracia, has had a big year for the Blue Devils as well, posting a .291 average with 11 home runs and a team high 61 RBI, is certainly a bat to watch out for in the middle of this order, to pair with Tyler Albright, Ben Rounds, and Macon Winslow.

#3 Oklahoma State

RPI* 44  SOS 13  Record vs Q1: 5-12 Q2: 10-3

Oklahoma State spend much of its early season schedule playing in round-robin type tournaments, first in Arlington, TX, at the Shriners Children’s College Showdown , beating Louisville and losing to NCAA Regional hosts Clemson and Texas.

They were back in the Lone Star State a couple weeks later, in Houston at the Astros Foundation College Classic, facing three SEC teams this time around, losing to NCAA Regional host Tennessee but beating NCAA near-miss Texas A&M and NCAA at-large bid holder Mississippi State.

The Cowboys lost the only home conference game played of three against West Virginia on opening weekend, then dropped two of three on the road at Utah. Kansas swept them on the road next, then getting the other Kansas school at home (KSU), OSU evened the count with a sweep of their own. A series loss on the road at Arizona followed, then a run-rule midweek loss to rival Oklahoma, a 1-1 split with Houston shortened by weather, and a road series loss at Cincinnati.

A home sweep over UCF was just what the Cowboys needed to right the ship, followed by a road series win at Baylor, and a home sweep over Arizona State. They went 1-1 in the Big 12 tournament, a win over Baylor and a loss to Kansas.

On the mound, leading the way in innings pitched are Harrison Bodendorf (10-1, 2.77 ERA), Mario Pesca (7-2, 3.43 ERA), and Hunter Watkins (5-4, 5.40 ERA). Team leaders in saves are Sean Youngerman with foiur and Gabe Davis with three. 

#4 Binghamton

RPI* 163  SOS 255  Record vs Q1: 0-2 Q2: 0-3

When you’re from New York state, as is Binghamton, you learn to stage your early season baseball games far from home, where the weather is warmer and permits you to at least play, if not practice outdoors.

That was the case with Binghamton, not getting to compete on its home field until March 11, nearly a month into the season. In the meantime, they sharpened their skills against such names as Texas State of the Sun Belt (!) Conference, East Tennessee State, and Missouri of the college baseball juggernaut SEC.

Once they began AEC play, it seemed to have been worth it with a home series win over Maine. That was followed by a road series win over the University of Albany, and a road series loss at Maryland-Baltimore County. That misfortune continued by getting swept at home by Bryant, but the pendulum did indeed swing both ways, an offsetting sweep over NJIT at home the next week.

The road to Massachusetts-Lowell resulted in a series loss, but two more wins over the Black Bears were waiting at Maine for them. The regular season concluded with a series win at home over Albany.

The American East Tournament turned into a whole week of competition, five games in five days for a 4-1 record that ended with a 6.5 victory over Bryant in 11 innings.

On the mound, leades in innings pitched are Hayden Tarsia (4-3, 4.97 ERA), Ryan Packard (3-5, 7.52 ERA), and Brady Bouchard (3-4, 8.78 ERA). Saves leaders are Jackson Mitchell with four and Jake Dally with three.

At the plate, Binghamton boasts a .294 team batting average, with five regulars hitting .300 or better: Zach Rogacki (.360, 42 RBI, 8 HRs), Freddy Forgione (.358, 46 RBI, 14 HRs), Matt Bolton (.356, 32 RBI,. 7 HRs), Devan Bade (.348, 59 RBI, 11 HRs), and Evan Sullivan (.306, 50 RBI, 13 HRs).

*****

*-Warren Nolan RPI