Minn. coach: SB, Kent St. 'beat unbelievable odds'

OMAHA, Neb. - Kent State and Arkansas hook up in the first of Saturday's two games at the College World Series.

The Golden Flashes are the first Mid-American Conference team to play in college baseball's showcase tournament since Eastern Michigan in 1976.

The second game pits two-time defending champion South Carolina against top-seeded Florida in a rematch of the 2011 finals.

Kent State coach Scott Stricklin says his team and fellow College World Series newcomer Stony Brook have "put some holes" in the argument that the NCAA baseball structure is patently unfair to cold-weather programs.
   
Minnesota coach John Anderson, however, isn't backing down from his belief that northern schools should consider banding together to form their own association and play for their own championship.
   
"Those two teams beat unbelievable odds," Anderson said Thursday. "Good for them. I'm happy for them and wish them luck. Yes, Stony Brook and Kent State give us some hope, but is it sustainable? That is the question."
   
Anderson, the winningest baseball coach in Big Ten history, suggested in February that his conference and others in the North should break away from the NCAA's traditional February-to-June schedule and play when the weather in the northern climes is more favorable.  Purdue coach Doug Schreiber has proposed that the NCAA allow teams to play 14-18 fall games whose results would carry over to the spring, when the season would resume.
   
Because of snow and cold, some northern teams must play their first 20 games on the road. Losing home-field advantage early in the season can lead to losses that negatively affect RPI, one of the main tools used for selecting teams for the NCAA tournament.
   
Anderson said some northern schools have been reluctant to put resources into baseball because of the lack of national-level success -- which creates further distance between the haves and have-nots in the sport.
   
Kent State and Stony Brook made it to Omaha despite having to play on the road for regionals and super regionals.
   
Before this year, the last cold-weather school in the CWS was Nebraska in 2005, though some would argue 2006-07 champion Oregon State fits the bill as a northern team even though it is on the West Coast.
   
Either way, northern representation has been spotty since the NCAA tournament discontinued a true regional format in 1987.
   
Stricklin said Kent State and Stony Brook have proved cold weather is not insurmountable, noting both have built the core of their programs with players from their regions.
   
"We develop a toughness about ourselves and develop a chip on our shoulder," Stricklin said. "It is possible to get here. For two teams to do it this year is pretty ironic because of the steam that was coming around with that argument. It does put some holes in that. We're thrilled to be here, thrilled to represent the North and hope it opens some doors for other schools."
   
Stony Brook coach Matt Senk, whose team was left out of the national tournament last year despite winning 42 games, said northern teams have a better chance to grab the selection committee's attention if they are not one-year wonders.
   
"What will make the most change is the Stony Brooks, St. John's and UConns doing it on a consistent basis," he said.