St. John's University Athletics
Friday, May 31
Charlottesville, Va. (Ted Davenport Field at Disharoon Park)
7 p.m.
St. John's University
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Mississippi State
Photo by: Rooted Creative
St. John’s to Open 2024 NCAA Tournament against Mississippi State on Friday
5/30/2024 2:09:00 PM | Baseball
Live StatsWatch (ESPN+)St. John's Game Notes (PDF)Mississippi State Game Notes (PDF)NCAA Tournament Central
The Red Storm and Bulldogs are both making their 38th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, will face off for the first time in program history
QUEENS, N.Y. – Returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018, the St. John's baseball team will begin its Road to Omaha against Mississippi State in the Charlottesville Regional on Friday.
The third-seeded Johnnies and second-seeded Bulldogs will square off on ESPN+ with Richard Cross and Todd Walker on the call. First pitch from Davenport Field at Disharoon Park is slated for 7 p.m.
The Red Storm is fresh off its conference-leading 10th BIG EAST title last weekend, sweeping the postseason field with an unblemished record (3-0) for the sixth time in program history. Led by 2024 Jack Kaiser Most Outstanding Player, Jimmy Keenan smacked a pair of game-winning two-run home runs in the BIG EAST Baseball Championship, walking off an 11-9 win over Georgetown in the opener and ripping an eighth-inning shot to take down Xavier, 8-7, in game two. The Red Storm catcher finished the conference tournament with a 7-for-14 showing and six RBIs.
Entering the weekend with a 37-16-1 record and an RPI of 51, as of Thursday, St. John's became the 11th NCAA Division I program since 1985 to acquire double-digit conference tournament titles. Additionally, the Red Storm will make its 38th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, tying Stanford, Texas A&M and opening-round opponent Mississippi State for 11th most all-time in college baseball history.
St. John's pitching emerged as a steady contender among top teams in Division I, boasting a 4.26 ERA (16th in NCAA). All-BIG EAST First Team selection Mario Pesca has been lethal for the Red with a 2.94 ERA, good for 36th in the country.
Friday's probable starter Xavier Kolhosser is tied for 16th among Division I pitchers with nine wins this season. The Wappinger Falls, N.Y., native is looking to become just the sixth Johnnie in program history and first since Sean Mooney (11-3, 2018) to record double-digit victories on the mound in a season. The right-hander has also started in three of the Red Storm's four shutouts (24th in NCAA) in 2024. Behind Kolhosser and Pesca, the Red Storm has protected the field defensively with a .978 fielding percentage, sitting 30th in the country.
The Johnnies have earned 11 wins against teams with an RPI of 70 or better this season, including singular wins over then-No. 2 Florida (30) and UConn (41), followed by a trio of victories against Xavier (40), Georgetown (59) and Creighton (66). Two of St. John's three counterparts in the Charlottesville Regional have RPIs under 30 - Virginia (12), Mississippi State (26) and Penn (180).
The Red Storm has only faced one of its three NCAA Regional opponents, going 3-4 all-time against Virginia with a 2-2 mark in the national tournament. St. John's has never matched up with Mississippi State and Penn in its history. The Red Storm will look to make its second appearance in an NCAA Super Regional and the first since the 2012 campaign.
St. John's will look to take down its first SEC opponent in the postseason since June 6, 2010, knocking off Ole Miss, 20-16. The Johnnies will also face an SEC opponent for the fourth straight NCAA Regional.
The Bulldogs (38-21, 17-13 SEC) are defensively sound with a .982 fielding percentage (4th in NCAA) while boasting a 4.15 ERA (12th). Mississippi State is also ranked eighth in the country with a 2.92 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Dakota Jordan paces the team offensively with 63 RBIs, 17 home runs and a .643 slugging percentage.
The Red Storm will compete in double-elimination style format in the NCAA Regionals, needing two losses to be bumped from the tournament. The 64-team field is split into 16 groups of four teams seeded Nos. 1-4.
The third-seeded Johnnies and second-seeded Bulldogs will square off on ESPN+ with Richard Cross and Todd Walker on the call. First pitch from Davenport Field at Disharoon Park is slated for 7 p.m.
The Red Storm is fresh off its conference-leading 10th BIG EAST title last weekend, sweeping the postseason field with an unblemished record (3-0) for the sixth time in program history. Led by 2024 Jack Kaiser Most Outstanding Player, Jimmy Keenan smacked a pair of game-winning two-run home runs in the BIG EAST Baseball Championship, walking off an 11-9 win over Georgetown in the opener and ripping an eighth-inning shot to take down Xavier, 8-7, in game two. The Red Storm catcher finished the conference tournament with a 7-for-14 showing and six RBIs.
Entering the weekend with a 37-16-1 record and an RPI of 51, as of Thursday, St. John's became the 11th NCAA Division I program since 1985 to acquire double-digit conference tournament titles. Additionally, the Red Storm will make its 38th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, tying Stanford, Texas A&M and opening-round opponent Mississippi State for 11th most all-time in college baseball history.
St. John's pitching emerged as a steady contender among top teams in Division I, boasting a 4.26 ERA (16th in NCAA). All-BIG EAST First Team selection Mario Pesca has been lethal for the Red with a 2.94 ERA, good for 36th in the country.
Friday's probable starter Xavier Kolhosser is tied for 16th among Division I pitchers with nine wins this season. The Wappinger Falls, N.Y., native is looking to become just the sixth Johnnie in program history and first since Sean Mooney (11-3, 2018) to record double-digit victories on the mound in a season. The right-hander has also started in three of the Red Storm's four shutouts (24th in NCAA) in 2024. Behind Kolhosser and Pesca, the Red Storm has protected the field defensively with a .978 fielding percentage, sitting 30th in the country.
The Johnnies have earned 11 wins against teams with an RPI of 70 or better this season, including singular wins over then-No. 2 Florida (30) and UConn (41), followed by a trio of victories against Xavier (40), Georgetown (59) and Creighton (66). Two of St. John's three counterparts in the Charlottesville Regional have RPIs under 30 - Virginia (12), Mississippi State (26) and Penn (180).
The Red Storm has only faced one of its three NCAA Regional opponents, going 3-4 all-time against Virginia with a 2-2 mark in the national tournament. St. John's has never matched up with Mississippi State and Penn in its history. The Red Storm will look to make its second appearance in an NCAA Super Regional and the first since the 2012 campaign.
St. John's will look to take down its first SEC opponent in the postseason since June 6, 2010, knocking off Ole Miss, 20-16. The Johnnies will also face an SEC opponent for the fourth straight NCAA Regional.
The Bulldogs (38-21, 17-13 SEC) are defensively sound with a .982 fielding percentage (4th in NCAA) while boasting a 4.15 ERA (12th). Mississippi State is also ranked eighth in the country with a 2.92 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Dakota Jordan paces the team offensively with 63 RBIs, 17 home runs and a .643 slugging percentage.
The Red Storm will compete in double-elimination style format in the NCAA Regionals, needing two losses to be bumped from the tournament. The 64-team field is split into 16 groups of four teams seeded Nos. 1-4.
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