The South Central Super Regional features a pair of teams that have been prominent in the national rankings all year with each holding down the No. 1 spot in one of the polls. Colorado Mesa enters as the No. 1 team in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper coach's poll while No. 4 Angelo State spent time atop the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association poll.

Some of the national pundits are having a tough time predicting this region as both schools have been predicted to win by different outlets. Most point to the fact that both are in the top six nationally in batting average with the Rams checking in at No. 1 and the Mavericks in at No. 6. Colorado Mesa leads the nation in doubles with 139 with Angelo State sitting at No. 8.

Both pitching staffs are led by 10-game winners in Maverick Garrett Hutson and Ram Trent Baker. Hutson was named the RMAC Pitcher of the Year after leading the conference in opponents batting average and second in ERA. Baker has thrown 77 innings and allowed just 72 hits with a 2.90 ERA.

The two schools do have three common opponents this season in Colorado School of Mines, CSU-Pueblo and West Texas A&M. Angelo State is 8-4 against those opponents while Colorado Mesa is 11-2 in those games.

WEEKEND RECAP
Colorado Mesa won the NCAA South Central Region I Tournament after defeating Colorado School of Mines twice and a win over West Texas A&M. The Mavericks have now finished the season with an unblemished 7-0 record against Mines and improved to 2-0 all-time against the Buffs. They batted .385 during the three game stint and had an OPS just shy of 1.000.
Josh Shapiro led the team in hitting for the tournament with a .636 average with seven hits and six runs scored. 

BACK IN ACTION
The NCAA South Central Region I Tournament saw the return of JR McDermott to the staff after missing three weeks with an injury. McDermott could have been the team MVP of the tournament for his relief work against West Texas A&M that saw him pitch four and two-thirds innings allowing three runs on five hits, walked one and struck out seven to earn the win. The win also was a record breaker for the senior as he became the all-time winningest pitcher in program history with 25 wins, eclipsing Kyle Davis' mark from 2009-2014. 

GLOVE WORK
In 27 innings during the NCAA South Central Region Tournament, Colorado Mesa committed just one error and fielded at 99 percent clip. The Maverick infielders, excluding first base, had 21 chances in the tournament and made every play. Colorado Mesa is up to No. 12 nationally with a .973 fielding percentage on the season.

UNLIKELY STARTER
Junior utilityman Trevin Reynolds has been a shining light for the Mavericks on the mound in the past two tournaments. In the past two weeks, Reynolds has pitched 15 and two-thirds innings and has allowed two runs on 10 hits, walked five and struck out 17 in two tournament wins. He pitched eight innings in a win over Mines that sent the Mavericks to the Super Regionals. 

DUBYA 2.0
To say that Maverick closer Will Dixon has been dominant this year would be an understatement. Dixon pitched in three games this weekend without allowing a hit and hasn't allowed a run since April 28 against MSU Denver and has recorded a save in nine of his last 12 appearances. The Mountain Vista High School product is currently tied for the national lead in saves with Brock Knoten of Rogers State and Tom Ambrosino of Adelphi at 14. Both of whom have completed their seasons.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
Freshman Haydn McGeary was the Mavericks third leading hitter during the regional round at Suplizio Field. The Thunderbird High School product batted .462 with two doubles and two home runs with a team-leading eight runs driven in.

WHAT A SUPER REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP WOULD MEAN
A Colorado Mesa South Central Super Region Championship would mean that the Mavericks will have won 50 games in a season for the second time in program history. The only other time that occurred was during the 2017 season where the Mavericks reached the NCAA National Semifinals before falling to eventual National Champion West Chester.

A win would send the Mavericks to the NCAA National Championships for the fourth time in the program's history. The last time the Mavericks played in Cary, N.C., they were the NCAA National Runner-up after falling to Southern Indiana in the National Championship game, 3-2 in 12 innings.

REGIONAL DOMINATION
The Colorado Mesa Mavericks and the Angelo State Rams have been in charge of the NCAA South Central Region for the past five years. Take away last season when Texas A&M-Kingsville claimed the region crown, the Mavericks and Rams have won the regional every year with Colorado Mesa winning in 2014 and 2017 and the Rams claiming titles in 2015 and 2016. The winner of the regional will be taking home the hardware for the third time in six years. 

THE STREAK OF 40
The Mavericks finished last season with a 43-16 overall record making it six straight seasons that Colorado Mesa has won 40 or more games. With their win over Dixie State on Friday evening, the Mavericks made it seven straight seasons of 40 wins. The high mark during the streak came in the 2017 season where the team won 50 games and reached the NCAA Championship Final Four that included a win over No. 1 ranked Delta State. 

NATIONAL RANKINGS
Colorado Mesa remained in the No. 1 slot in the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper rankings and at No. 2 in the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association rankings after they werent updated following the regional rounds. The only rankings that were updated came from Perfect Game who had the Mavericks slotted at No. 2 behind North Greenville. Perfect Game also gave the Mavericks the slight edge in their matchup with Angelo State.

THE SKIPPER
Head coach Chris Hanks enters his 21st season guiding the Mavericks and has an impressive 879-353 record, the most wins from a coach in program history. The Carbondale, Colo. native won his 850th game as the Maverick skipper on March 16, 2019 in an 11-0 win over No. 9 Colorado School of Mines. He has led Colorado Mesa to three region championships, a feat that has earned him ABCA Region Coach of the year three times now. This season he was named the RMAC Coach of the Year for the 11th time in his tenure. 

UP NEXT
If Colorado Mesa can claim two wins over Angelo State this weekend they will advance to their fourth NCAA National Championship Tournament. The Mavericks made trips to the National Championships in 2009, 2014, and 2017 with a runner-up finish in 2014.