This will be the biggest weekend of the year so far in the conference races. There are a number of conferences around the country where the top two or three teams in the standings are facing off this weekend, with only three weekends to play at the most. That makes this weekend a very important one to follow as a fan, as we'll see some conference races tighten up real quick, or maybe see the overwhelming favorite break out.
Disclaimer: THE RANKINGS BELOW ARE NOT OUR RANKINGS. WE DO NOT DO RANKINGS. THE RANKINGS BELOW ARE FROM THE MOST RECENT PERFECTGAME.ORG DIVISION II TOP 25 LIST, WHICH YOU CAN VIEW BY CLICKING HERE. Thank you!
Of the six series' listed below, three of them are between teams who are #1 and #2 in their respective conference standings. Our D2 Diamond Series of the Week is between #1 and #3 in their conference.
Keep in mind, counting this weekend, we have only three weekends of regular season baseball left! Not only that, but there are a couple conferences finishing up this weekend and next weekend, so conference tournaments are right around the corner!
With that said, here is our D2 Diamond Series of the Week:
#1 Tampa (27-10, 13-2 SSC) at #13 Florida Southern (29-8, 7-5 SSC)
Sunshine State Conference
Game One (Friday, 4/21, 6 p.m. ET): UT David Lebron (6-0, 2.83) vs FSC Logan Browning (6-1, 3.64) Live Stats | Live Video
Game Two (Saturday, 4/22, 1 p.m. ET): UT Christian Calleja (3-0, 4.92) vs FSC Chase Pilato (5-2, 4.31) Live Stats
Game Three (Saturday, 4/22, 4 p.m. ET): UT Colton Widdows (5-0, 1.24) vs FSC Jake Walsh (9-1, 1.77) Live Stats
(Projected pitching match-ups are based only off prior series' rotations, and should not be considered official in any way.)
Well, here we go again. Another Sunshine State Conference match-up that is the crown jewel of the nation this weekend. On paper, we have two pretty evenly-matched teams, but we know baseball games are not played on paper. Tampa has the edge in hitting, while FSC has the very slight edge in the pitching numbers. However, Tampa, as well all know, has the intangible of knowing how to win big games, which all three of these will be.
Here are a handful of other match-ups that should have some big postseason implications around the nation:
Lindenwood (25-14, 18-9 MIAA) at #4 Emporia State (32-8, 21-5 MIAA)
Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletics Association
Game One (Saturday, 4/22, 6 p.m. CT): Live Stats
Game Two (Sunday, 4/23, 1 p.m. CT): Live Stats | Live Audio
Game Three (Monday, 4/24, 1 p.m. CT): Live Stats
#15 Southern Arkansas (33-8, 25-2 GAC) at Arkansas Tech (27-16, 20-7 GAC)
Great American Conference
Game One (Sunday, 4/23, 1 p.m. CT): Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio
Game Two (Sunday, 4/23, 4 p.m. CT): Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio
Game Three (Monday, 4/24, 1 p.m. CT): Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio
#12 Azusa Pacific (31-7, 18-6 PacWest) at Point Loma (23-13, 15-9 PacWest)
PacWest Conference
Game One (Friday, 4/21, 12 p.m. PT): Live Stats | Live Video
Game Two (Friday, 4/21, 3 p.m. PT): Live Stats | Live Video
Game Three (Saturday, 4/22, 12 p.m. PT): Live Stats | Live Video
Game Four (Saturday, 4/22, 3 p.m. PT): Live Stats | Live Video
Walsh (27-9, 16-4 GLIAC) at #22 Northwood (29-9, 16-4 GLIAC)
Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Game One (Saturday, 4/22, 1 p.m. ET): Live Stats
Game Two (Saturday, 4/22, 4 p.m. ET): Live Stats
Game Three (Sunday, 4/23, 12 p.m. ET): Live Stats
Game Four (Sunday, 4/23, 3 p.m. ET): Live Stats
Lock Haven (25-9, 11-5 PSAC) vs Millersville (24-12, 8-8 PSAC)
Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference
Game One at MU (Friday, 4/21, 1 p.m. ET): Live Stats | Live Audio
Game Two at MU (Friday, 4/21, 3 p.m. ET): Live Stats | Live Audio
Game Three at LHU (Saturday, 4/22, 1 p.m. ET): Live Stats
Game Four at LHU (Saturday, 4/22, 3 p.m. ET): Live Stats
And here is what the schedule looks like for the most recent PerfectGame.org Division II Top 25 rankings:
1. Tampa (27-10, 13-2 SSC): As it usually is in the SSC, it is another grind of an opponent for the Spartans. Tampa heads to Lakeland to face #13 Florida Southern in our D2 Diamond Series of the Week for three games this weekend.
2. North Georgia (33-8, 16-5 PBC): The Nighthawks are at home to take part in their final conference games of the weekend. UNG will welcome Flagler in to town for three games, as well as a contest against West Georgia at home on Tuesday (Apr. 25). UNG actually plays its last nine regular season games of the year at home, where they're 20-4 this season.
3. Chico State (31-7, 24-3 CCAA): Chico has a three-game weekend set with Cal State-San Bernardino on the docket this weekend, all at home, as the Wildcats are in the middle of a nine-game home stand.
4. Emporia State (32-8, 21-5 MIAA): With a 3.5-game lead in the conference, and facing the team in second place in the conference this weekend for three games at home, it could be the defining weekend of the regular season for the Hornets. They'll face Lindenwood this weekend.
5. Mercyhurst (28-2, 15-1 PSAC): The 15-game winning streak for the Lakers will be on the line this weekend in four games against Gannon, the first two at home and the latter two on the road, along with a single contest on the road against Lake Erie on Tuesday (Apr. 25).
6. USC Aiken (31-11, 14-7 PBC): The Pacers will be playing their last PBC games of the season this weekend, with three contests against Montevallo on the road. USCA is two games behind UNG, who is facing a tougher opponent in Flagler, so the chance is there for the Pacers.
7. Angelo State (30-8, 8-3 LSC): Angelo is facing Eastern New Mexico on the road in four conference contests this weekend.
8. Dixie State (29-9, 18-6 PacWest): Dixie State heads to Hawaii this weekend for a long week of games. The squad will face Hawaii Pacific in four games on Friday/Saturday, and then face Hawaii Hilo for four more games on Tuesday/Wednesday.
9. Lubbock Christian (29-10, 12-3 Heartland): The Chaps are at home this weekend for three conference games against Newman.
10. Colorado Mesa (30-8, 22-2 RMAC): CMU has the longest winning streak in the nation right now at 17 straight, and they have almost wrapped up the conference despite 12 games left to play. They lead the RMAC by seven games, and face last-place Adams State for four games this weekend.
11. Mount Olive (39-7, 22-2 Conf. Carolinas): The Trojans have wrapped up the Conference Carolinas regular season title, and they'll play their final three games of the regular season this weekend against Limestone at home.
12. Azusa Pacific (31-7, 18-6 PacWest): The Cougars are tied for the PacWest lead with Dixie State, but the last three weekends for APU is going to be its toughest stretch of the season, starting with four games on the road at Point Loma this weekend.
13. Florida Southern (29-8, 7-5 SSC): FSC has some chasing down to do to get in to the conference race, and this weekend could go a long way. The Mocs welcome #1 Tampa in to town for three games in our D2 Diamond Series of the Week.
14. UC San Diego (25-11, 17-9 CCAA): The Tritons fell in their first game of the weekend against Cal State-Dominguez Hills, 12-6 on Thursday (Apr. 20), and they'll play three more games against them this weekend, with one more on the road on Friday (Apr. 21) and a pair at home on Saturday (Apr. 22).
15. Southern Arkansas (33-8, 25-2 GAC): The Muleriders face a very good Arkansas Tech team this weekend for three games on the road, a team they just lost to on Tuesday (Apr. 18) in non-conference action, 8-4. SAU is running away with the conference, holding a five-game lead over both Arkansas-Monticello and this week's opponent, ATU. And guess who SAU faces next weekend? The aforementioned UAM. As long as SAU wins two games between those six contests, they'll have the conference title wrapped up.
16. Delta State (34-8, 22-5 GSC): Delta State has a 12-game winning streak on the line this weekend as they welcome Valdosta State in to town for three games. Delta leads the conference by four games with only six contests left to play.
17. Nova Southeastern (25-15, 11-7 SSC): The Sharks are on the road this weekend for three games against the self-proclaimed Probation Bandits, Embry-Riddle (they're in the middle of their D-II probationary period before becoming full members).
18. West Texas A&M (27-9, 8-2 LSC): The Buffs are part of the three-team LSC runaway, and they'll have an opportunity to pad their record before they face the other two teams of that trio in the next two weekends. WTAM will face Tarleton State at home for four games this weekend.
19. Minnesota State (30-7, 25-3 NSIC): MSU leads the NSIC by four games, and they'll face one of the lower-half teams in the conference this weekend for four games on the road at Bemidji State.
20. Georgia College (28-10, 14-7 PBC): Georgia College is one of the two schools just behind PBC-leading North Georgia by two games with this weekend's three games being the last to play. The Bobcats will be facing Georgia Southwestern in those three games, one of the bottom teams in the conference, so they have a chance to at least draw even with UNG (or USCA) if they can get lucky.
21. West Chester (23-6, 13-3 PSAC): The Golden Rams will take their eight-game winning streak to the field against Bloomsburg for a doubleheader at home, and then a doubleheader on the road this weekend.
22. Northwood (29-9, 16-4 GLIAC): Northwood just picked up a huge series victory over Wayne State, who was leading the conference prior to that series, and now they'll have to turn that engine over again as they face Walsh in four games this weekend, the team they are now tied with at the top of the GLIAC.
23. Central Missouri (26-12, 17-9 MIAA): The Mules are at home this weekend for three games against Northeastern State as they try and keep pace with Emporia State, who leads them by four games with 10 to play.
24. Belmont Abbey (27-15, 16-8 Conf. Carolinas): The Crusaders are playing their final conference games of the season this weekend, with three games on the road at Erskine, as well as in a single game on the road at Catawba.
25. Lynn (25-16, 8-10 SSC): Lynn has to be barely hanging on to these rankings by a thread, as they have lost four straight games leading up to this weekend, where they'll face Eckerd in three games at home.
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