LSU Baseball: A Return to the Top 25

Miami swept St. Mary’s to remain atop the Baseball America Top 25 for a fifth straight week.  North Carolina also remained in the previous spot at No. 2, despite having the week off for exams.

Arizona State moved up one spot with a weekend series win at UCLA.  Florida State also moved up one spot to No. 4 with a pair of mid-week wins at Stetson, followed by a two game series win at Clemson.

Nebraska moved up one spot to No. 5 with a pair of mid-week wins over Western Illinois, and a weekend series win over Louisiana-Lafayette.  Stanford dropped three spots after a pair of mid-week losses, but bounced back to win their two weekend games against San Jose State.

Rice remained at No. 7 after having the week off for exams.  San Diego also remained in their previous spot with a weekend series win over Pepperdine.

Texas A&M continued their streak with a weekend series win over Dallas Baptist.  The Aggies will travel to Nebraska (5) this weekend.

Oklahoma State dropped one spot after winning three of four from Utah Valley State.  The Cowboys travel to Rice (7) this weekend.

Georgia continued their dominance in the SEC by taking a weekend series against Ole Miss.  Cal State Fullerton remained at No. 12 with a series win at UC Santa Barbara.

UC Irvine remained at No. 13, followed by Wichita State at No. 14.  The Shockers loss two mid-week games but bounced back to sweep Northern Iowa.

Missouri remained idle at No. 15 with a mid-week loss to Kansas followed by a series win over Kansas State.  Cal also remained in their previous spot by winning their weekend series against Arizona.

South Carolina remained at No. 17 after a series win over Florida.  Vanderbilt made a four spot jump thanks to their weekend sweep of in-state rival Tennessee.

North Carolina State remained at No. 19 with a pair of victories over Campbell and High Point.  Michigan moved up one spot to No. 20 after taking three of four from rival Ohio State in Ann Arbor.

St. John’s moved up three spots with a perfect 4-0 week, including a sweep of West Virginia.

LSU returned to the rankings with a second straight SEC series sweep.  The Tigers have won nine in a row, including mid-week victories over Tulane and Louisiana-Lafayette.  The Tigers swept consecutive conference series for the first time in 10 years, doing it against two ranked teams. The Tigers are one of five SEC teams in the top 25, and are currently in first place in their division.

Kentucky dropped five spots to No. 23 after getting swept by LSU.  The Wildcats were 25-2 at home before the Tigers came to town.  Kentucky travels to Tennessee this weekend for a series that could decide the last team in the SEC tournament.

Coastal Carolina dropped four spots after losing their weekend series at Georgia Tech.  TCU debuted at No. 25 after going 19-4 in their last 23 games.  The Horned Frogs have won five consecutive weekend series and lead the Mountain West by one and a half games.

Oregon State (23) dropped out of the Top 25 after losing four straight, two to Gonzaga and two to Washington State.  Long Beach State (25) also dropped from the rankings after losing another weekend series, this one to UC Davis. 

Around the SEC:

Eastern Division:

1.      Georgia

2.      Vanderbilt (3 GB)

T3. South Carolina (4.5 GB)

T3. Florida (4.5 GB)

T6. Kentucky (6.5 GB)

T6. Tennessee (6.5 GB)

Western Division:

1.      LSU

T2. Alabama (.5 GB)

T2. Ole Miss (.5 GB)

4.      Arkansas (2 GB)

5.      Auburn (2.5 GB)

6.      Miss. State (5.5 GB)

The Road to Hoover:

Current SEC Tournament Seedings:

1.      Georgia*

2.      LSU

3.      Vanderbilt

4.      South Carolina

5.      Florida

6.      Alabama

7.      Ole Miss

8.      Kentucky/Tennessee (will play this weekend to break tie)

*Georgia is currently the only team to have clinched a SEC tournament bid.