It is official! Lee University will be making its first-ever appearance in the NCAA Division II Baseball Regional Championship when the Flames travel to Pensacola, Florida, and the University of West Florida on May 27-30 to take part in the tournament. Lee (34-9) is the second seed and will be paired against No. 5-seed Alabama Huntsville (22-18) in the opening round on Wednesday at 4 p.m. (EDT).

Host West Florida (34-9) is the No. 1 seed and will test (No. 6) Shorter University (27-15). The Hawks are also making their first regional showing. Tampa University (16-4) is the third seed and will face No. 4 Delta State (28-18) to round out the six-team field in the double-elimination tournament. Five of the six teams are members of the GSC.

The NCAA divides the Division II field into eight regionals with the winner of each advancing to Cary, North Carolina to play for the National Championship. Tampa claimed the 2019 title, but all NCAA play was halted in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic.

Coach Mark Brew (who was named the All-South Region Coach of the Year) commented: "Our team is really excited about this opportunity. They want to do more than just show up and be in it. They want to make the most of this opportunity, but it will be a tough bracket. It is a really good regional field and has programs with lots of post season history. It should be a great week of baseball."

Veterans lead Flames into tourney play: Pitcher Logan Workman and infielder Alan Smith were named to the All-South Region First Team. Workman, a hard-throwing right-hander, is 7-1 on the year with a 1.88 ERA. He has struck out 101 in 71.2 innings. Smith leads to the team with a .385 average and 17 doubles. Slugging senior first baseman Ryan Beamish landed on the second team. He is second in the nation with 20 home runs and third in RBI with 66. Andy Rivera earned All-Region Honorable Mention. The veteran Lee closer is 2-0 with a 3.42 ERA and nine saves. Rivera has punched out 31 in 26.1 innings of work.

Junior Justen Freeman is hitting .339 since breaking into the Flames' starting lineup and has been used mainly as a designated hitter. Senior Colton Yeager has been one of Lee's hottest of late. The second baseman has raised his average to .321. Thomas Zazzaro is tops for a team that has posted 321 runs over 43 games. He has crossed the dish 45 times.

The double-play combination of Smith, Zazzaro, Yeager and Beamish has big a huge plus for Lee hurlers. They have teamed for a total of 80 twin-killings, far more than any other team in the GSC. The defense has an overall clip of .966 compared to .954 for their opponents.

About Alabama Huntsville: "We did not play each other this season and other than what we saw watching them in the conference tournament, we know just a little about them. What I saw was a team that is playing really well. It will be a tough game, but our team has played in big games all year and we have found multiple ways to win." remarked Lee's coach Brew before his team departed for Pensacola.

This is the seventh time in program history the UAH has reached the NCAA tournament and the third time the team will compete in the South Regional. The Chargers last competed in the NCAA South Regional in 2014 after the squad earned an automatic berth after winning the GSC Championships. Overall, in seven trips to the NCAA tournament, UAH holds a 10-12 record including a 4-4 mark in national postseason games under head coach Hunter Royer. The Chargers enter the NCAA tournament after reaching the 2021 GSC tournament semifinals.  

UAH has six regular starters hitting better than .300. Garrett Bodine is batting .362. and leads the Chargers in runs scored (40), 13 stolen bases in 15 attempts and 28 walks. He is followed by Carson Villalta (.350), Colin Brewer (329), Zach Duvall (.325), Landon Ezzell (.315) and John Trousdale (.301). UAH has seven regular players with at least two homeruns. Duvall has six, Bodine and Griffin Rivers five apiece.