Titans Open the First Round of Series Against Oklahoma St.

Cal State Fullerton, sixth-seeded in the College World Series, will begin its quest for a third national championship Saturday when the Titans play third-seeded Oklahoma State at 5:10 p.m. PDT at Omaha.

The series, in its 44th year, begins Friday, when top-seeded Stanford plays eighth-seeded Georgia Southern at 1:10 p.m. and fourth-seeded Georgia plays fifth-seeded Mississippi State at 5:10 in Rosenblatt Stadium.

Saturday’s action will begin at 1:10 p.m. with second-seeded Louisiana State playing The Citadel, which upset Miami 4-1 Tuesday to win the Atlantic Regional and earn the tournament’s seventh seed.

The tournament is split into two, four-team, double-elimination brackets, the first consisting of Friday’s participants and the second of Saturday’s. The winners of each bracket will meet in a single game, scheduled for June 9, for the national title.

Fullerton Coach Larry Cochell was glad to see the Titans weren’t in the same bracket as Stanford, which has been ranked No. 1 in the nation for the past month. The Cardinal, which swept a three-game series from Fullerton early this season, eliminated the Titans from the 1988 series.

“Everyone is tough when you get to the College World Series, but if I had to pick one team, Stanford is the team to beat,” Cochell said. “With their great pitching and defense, they’re going to be difficult to beat.”

Fullerton had a 4-0 record in the Central Regional at Austin, Tex. The Titans (36-21) beat host Texas twice, 5-2, Sunday and, 3-0, Monday. Fullerton opened the regional with a 16-3 victory over Old Dominion and then beat Creighton, 6-3.

The Titans, ranked fourth in Tuesday’s Collegiate Baseball-ESPN poll and ninth by Baseball America, made only one error in the regional. They outscored their opponents, 30-8, and outhit them, 44-27.

Five Fullerton pitchers combined for a 2.00 earned-run average and sophomore right-hander James Popoff won two games, including a four-hit shutout of the Longhorns Monday.

Paul Bunch, who replaced David Ayala in right field for the first Texas game, batted .556 (five for nine) in the regional with a home run and three runs batted in. Third baseman Phil Nevin hit .467 (seven for 15) with three RBIs, and left fielder Rich Gonzales batted .400 (six for 15) with a home run and five RBIs.

“We think we have as good a shot as anyone,” Cochell said. “We’re playing awfully good baseball right now.”

Oklahoma State (53-16) swept through the West II Regional, defeating host Arizona State twice, 17-9, Sunday and, 10-5, Monday. The Cowboys, ranked second and third in the two national polls, made only one error in the regional, outscored their opponents, 48-16, and outhit them, 54-31.

Like Fullerton, Oklahoma State has three solid starting pitchers--junior right-hander Dennis Burbank, a former Valencia High standout who played at Pepperdine and Cypress College before transferring to Oklahoma State, senior right-hander Gordie Tipton and freshman right-hander Brad Gore.