2002 FAU Owls baseball team

NCAATeamSeason
Mode = baseball
Year = 2002
Team = FAU Owls


ImageSize = 155 px
Conference = Atlantic Sun Conference
Division =
ShortConference = Atlantic Sun
CoachRank =
APRank = 15 (Collegiate Baseball)
Record = 46-21
ConfRecord =22-8
HeadCoach = Kevin Cooney
HitCoach =
PitchCoach =
StadiumArena = FAU Baseball Stadium
Champion = Tuscaloosa, AL Regional Champion
Atlanta, GA Super Regional Appearance
BowlTourney =
BowlTourney = The 2002 Florida Atlantic Blue Wave baseball team [From 1981-2006, the FAU baseball team was called the "Blue Wave."] was the intercollegiate baseball team of Florida Atlantic University for the 2002 NCAA baseball season. It competed on the Division I level in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The 2002 team became the first in school history to clinch a Regional championship and earn an appearance in the NCAA Super Regionals, by defeating Alabama in the Regional Championship game, 6-5.

2002 schedule and results

Regionals

The 2002 season saw FAU receive its third bid to the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship tournament; its first since 2000. As an at-large selection, FAU was placed in the Regional bracket with the Alabama Crimson Tide, the Auburn Tigers, and the Southeast Missouri State Tigers. The top seed of the Regional was the national #3 seed, Alabama, who hosted in Tuscaloosa, AL. FAU pulled off an impressive win in the opening game against Auburn, as both underdogs in FAU and SE MIssouri State, won their first games. Beating the Tigers of SE Missouri State in the second round allowed FAU to roll right into the Regional championship game free of losses and avoiding the "Loser's Bracket" of the Regional. Host Alabama played itself back into the Regional by defeating Auburn and SE MIssouri State, eliminating both en route to the Regional championship game. The Regional Final was set as the FAU Blue Wave and the top-seeded Alabama Crimson Tide. FAU, winning its first two games, dropped the first meeting to Alabama, 7-2, forcing a second game in the Regional Final for the championship. FAU pulled off the upset and clinched its first-ever Regional championship by defeating Alabama, 6-5. The win sent FAU to its first-ever Super Regional appearance, placing FAU in the final 16 teams.

3RoundBracket-Byes-DubElm | RD1= Tuscaloosa, AL Regional
RD2= Round 2
RD3= Regional Final
group1=
group2=Loser's Bracket

RD1-seed1=
RD1-team1=Alabama Crimson Tide
RD1-score1=4
RD1-seed2=
RD1-team2=SE Missouri State Tigers
RD1-score2=7

RD1-seed3=
RD1-team3=Auburn Tigers
RD1-score3=11
RD1-seed4=
RD1-team4=FAU Blue Wave
RD1-score4=16

RD1-seed5=
RD1-team5=Alabama Crimson Tide
RD1-score5=6
RD1-seed6=
RD1-team6=Auburn Tigers
RD1-score6=3

RD2-seed1=
RD2-team1=SE Missouri State Tigers
RD2-score1=6
RD2-seed2=
RD2-team2=FAU Blue Wave
RD2-score2=12

RD2-seed3=
RD2-team3=Alabama Crimson Tide
RD2-score3=7
RD2-seed4=
RD2-team4=SE Missouri State Tigers
RD2-score4=4

RD3-seed1=
RD3-team1=FAU Blue Wave
RD3-score1a=2
RD3-score1b=6
RD3-seed2=
RD3-team2=Alabama Crimson Tide
RD3-score2a= 7
RD3-score2b=5

uper Regionals

After clinching their first-ever Regional championship, FAU moved on to the round of the final 16 - the Super Regionals. The Blue Wave faced the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, the #1 seed in the Super Regional bracket. FAU and Georgia Tech met at Tech's historic Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta, GA in a best-of-3 series, with a birth to the 2002 College World Series on the line. Unfortunately for the Blue Wave, the heavily favored and top-ranked Yellow Jackets proved to be too much, pounding the Blue Wave in a two-game sweep.

:Game 1Linescore
Road=Blue Wave|RoadAbr=FAU
R1=0|R2=0|R3=0|R4=0|R5=0|R6=2|R7=1|R8=0|R9=3|RR=3|RH=9|RE=1
Home=Yellow Jackets|HomeAbr=GT
H1=1|H2=0|H3=0|H4=6|H5=5|H6=0|H7=1|H8=1|H9=X|HR=14|HH=18|HE=1
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Kyle Bakker (12-2)|LP=Danny Core (8-6)|SV=
RoadHR=none|HomeHR=Parker, Remole (4th inning)|HRH=yes|

:Game 2Linescore
Road=Yellow Jackets|RoadAbr=GT
R1=1|R2=0|R3=3|R4=2|R5=2|R6=0|R7=0|R8=0|R9=3|RR=11|RH=13|RE=1
Home=Blue Wave|HomeAbr=FAU
H1=0|H2=0|H3=0|H4=0|H5=1|H6=0|H7=0|H8=10|H9=4|HR=5|HH=7|HE=2
RSP=|HSP=
WP=Chris Goodman (8-1)|LP=Chris Pillsbury (10-3)|SV=
RoadHR=none|HomeHR=Fiorentino (9th inning)|HRH=yes|

Awards and honors

Freshman All-American

*OF Jeff Fiorentino
*2B Derek Hutton

All-Conference

*First Team All-Atlantic Sun Honors
**RP Tim McNab (Senior)
**SP Danny Core (Junior)
**SP Chris Pillsbury (Sophomore)
**SP L.J. Biernbaum (Senior)

*Second Team All-Atlantic Sun Honors
**3B Mike Cox (Junior)
**SS Bobby Spano (Senior)

*Freshman Team All-Atlantic Sun Honors
**OF Jeff Fiorentino
**2B Derek Hutton

2002 MLB First-Year Player Draft

FAU players selected in the 2002 MLB First-Year Player Draft:

Notes and references

External links

* [http://fausports.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/fau-m-basebl-body.html Official FAU Owls Baseball Homepage]
* [http://www.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/division_i2.html NCAA Baseball National Polls]
* [http://www.atlanticsun.org/images/pdf/Records-Baseball.pdf Atlantic Sun Conference Baseball Championship Record Book]