AUSTIN, Texas — The UC Santa Barbara Baseball team (38-18) is set to open its 16^th NCAA Tournament appearance on Friday, taking on Tarleton State (37-19) in the opening round of the NCAA Austin Regional. A double elimination tournament, the Gauchos are guaranteed to play again on Saturday, against either No. 6 national seed Texas (401-13) or Holy Cross (25-28).
 
HOW THE GAUCHOS GOT HERE
Santa Barbara earned an at-large bid to the field of 64, thanks in large part to playing one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country and earning a share of The Big West Regular Season Championship. The Gauchos stumbled in the conference tournament, going 1-2, but still have won seven of their last 10 games and 14 of their last 20.
 
Santa Barbara also has The Big West Pitcher of the Year Jackson Flora, who is a semifinalist for both the Golden Spikes Award and Dick Howser Trophy, as well as a finalist for both the College Baseball Foundation and Baseball America's Pitcher of the Year Awards. He is the jewel in the crown of a Gaucho pitching staff that ranks among the top ten in the country in ERA, hits allowed per nine innings and WHIP.
 
SCOUTING THE LONGHORNS
Texas earned the No. 6 overall seed as an at-large team after being knocked out of the SEC Tournament by eventual finalists Arkansas. The Longhorns did finish second in the SEC in the regular season and carry a 40-13 overall record into this, their 39^th time hosting an NCAA Regional. Texas is 153-60-1 overall in regional play and 110-33-1 when playing those regionals at home.
 
The Longhorns' lineup is led by a pair of newcomers: freshman Anthony Pack Jr. and Seton Hall transfer Aiden Robbins, who earned SEC Freshman and Newcomer of the Year honors respectively. Pack Jr. is batting .353 to lead all Longhorns, and only Robbins and 20-homer catcher Carson Tinney have a higher on-base-plus-slugging percentage (OPS) than Pack's 1.018. Robbins is hitting .341 on the season and is just one long ball behind Tinney — who himself is batting .316 — with 19 home runs on the year.
 
Texas complements its powerful lineup with one of the top pitching staffs in the nation, led by Dylan Volantis and his 2.00 ERA and 109 strikeouts. Rounding out the rotation are Ruger Riojas and his 100 strikeouts (to go along with a 4.02 ERA) and Luke Harrison, whose 4.63 ERA and 80 strikeouts are nothing to scoff at. At the back end of the bullpen, closer Sam Cozart has eight saves and 66 K's.
 
SCOUTING THE TEXANS
Tarleton State is making its first appearance in the Division-I NCAA Tournament in just its second year of eligibility after transitioning from Division II. The Texans won the WAC Regular-Season and Tournament Championships, blowing out Sacramento State, 21-11 in their conference title game. They also have wins over Texas and Baylor (twice) on their resume.
 
The Texans like to run, stealing 114 bases on 140 attempts as a team, and no Texan runs more than Slade McCloud, swiping 22 on 27 tries. McCloud is also the team's second-leading hitter behind Rayner Heinrich, batting .356 to Heinrich's .375, which leads all qualified hitters at the regional. Heinrich's 12 home runs are also a team-best, as are his 22 doubles. And Tarleton State has hit more doubles than any team in this weekend's field.
 
The Texans' ability to score has helped them immensely, because the pitching staff has just one member with enough innings to qualify for the NCAA leaderboards. And with all due respect to Ethan Wendel, a 5.64 ERA and 41 strikeouts do not have him very high on said leaderboards. Wendel was in great form when his team needed him most though, holding California Baptist's potent offense to just two runs in 5 2/3 innings of last weekend's WAC Semifinal. But the Gauchos are not set to face Wendel, with Cort Lowry set to open the weekend on the bump. He has a 3.24 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 50 innings of work, highlighted by seven innings of one-hit ball against Sacramento State in the first round of the WAC Championship.
 
SCOUTING THE CRUSADERS
Texas is not the only team in this field with a National Championship, since Holy Cross won the 1952 College World Series and reached the final again in 1963. However, in the current format the Crusaders are just 1-4 and are the only team in this weekend's field with a losing record, coming in at 25-28. They swept Army and took two of three from Bucknell to win the Patriot League Championship and the conference's automatic bid to the tournament.
 
For all the running that Tarleton State does, this weekend's top base-stealer actually plays in Crusaders purple, outfielder and Patriot League Player of the Year CJ Egrie. His 46 stolen bases on 48 attempts ranks second in the NCAA, and as Holy Cross' leader in batting average, expect him to be on base (and running) frequently. The glaring hole in the Crusaders' stat sheet is in the home run column, where they have just 41. And no Holy Cross batter has more than Gianni Royer's six.
 
Like the other team in purple this weekend, Holy Cross' number of qualified pitchers is low, just Patriot League First Team starting pitcher Jaden Wywoda and workhorse reliever Jake Lenahan. Wywoda has 93 1/3 innings and a 3.76 ERA over 14 starts, while Lenahan has worked 59 1/3 innings in 18 appearances, 14 of which were in relief.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
The Gauchos and Tarleton State will play the second game of the Austin Regional on Friday, with first pitch from UFCU Disch-Falk Field set for 5 p.m. Central (3 p.m. Pacific). The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+, with live stats and a free, audio-only broadcast available through ucsbgauchos.com.