COLLEGE WORLD SERIES CAPSULES

A capsule look at the eight teams in the College World Series at Omaha’s Rosenblatt Stadium, in order of seeding:

1. MIAMI

Record: 53-8.

Coach: Ron Fraser, 30th year.

Conference finish: Independent.

How advanced: Won Atlantic Regional championship.

Ranking: First by Baseball America magazine and Collegiate Baseball magazine.

Comment: National champions in 1982 and ‘85, and NCAA participants for 20 consecutive years, the Hurricanes are trying to win one more title for Fraser, who will retire after the season.

Miami is deep at all positions but especially at pitcher, where starters Jeff Alkire (13-2, 2.37 earned-run average), Silvio Censale (8-0, 2.13 ERA) and Kenny Henderson (8-2, 2.84 ERA) head a staff that has a 2.80 team ERA. The Hurricanes have two bullpen stoppers, Gus Gandarillas (7-1, 1.83 ERA, four saves) and Dave Dorish (3-0, 1.98 ERA).

Catcher Charles Johnson (.314, 12 home runs, 55 runs batted in) is the only Miami player with 10 or more homers, but the Hurricanes have excellent team speed, having stolen 143 bases in 182 tries. Juan Llanes leads the team with a .331 average, Luis Hernandez is batting .330, Johnathen Smith is hitting .315 with eight homers and 45 RBIs, and Gino DiMare is batting .314 with 39 stolen bases in 44 attempts.

2. WICHITA STATE

Record: 56-9.

Coach: Gene Stephenson, 15th year.

Conference finish: First in the Missouri Valley.

How advanced: Won Midwest Regional championship.

Ranking: Second by Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball.

Comment: The Shockers, national champions in 1989 and runners-up last season, had a 29-1 record before a mid-April slump, during which they lost six of eight games. But they regained their stride and won 25 of their last 27, four in a row during the regional.

Wichita State has a team batting average of .328 and averages a nation-leading 9.95 runs per game, but offense isn’t even the Shockers’ forte. Pitching is. Wichita State has three outstanding starters--Charlie Giaudrone (13-1, 1.73 ERA), Shane Dennis (13-2, 3.12 ERA) and Kennie Steenstra (13-2, 4.32 ERA)--and a solid relief pitcher, Darren Dreifort (6-1, 1.23 ERA, 12 saves).

The Shockers, who gave up only three runs in four regional games, have a team ERA of 2.60 and have allowed three runs or fewer in 41 games. They are led offensively by third baseman Scott McCloughan (.394, seven homers, 23 doubles, 62 RBIs), right fielder Todd Dreifort (.382, eight homers, 82 RBIs), catcher Doug Mirabelli (.364, 10 homers, 64 RBIs) and shortstop Chris Wimmer (.364, 52 RBIs, 50 stolen bases in 55 attempts) and first baseman Jason White (.315, 15 homers, 72 RBIs).

3. TEXAS

Record: 46-15.

Coach: Gliff Gustafson, 25th year.

Conference finish: First in the Southwest.

How advanced: Won Central Regional championship

Ranking: Fourth by Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball.

Comment: Gustafson will be making his 16th College World Series appearance, breaking former USC Coach Rod Dedeaux’s record, and Texas will extend its record to 26 trips to Omaha.

The Longhorns have one of college baseball’s best all-around players, center fielder Calvin Murray, who is expected to be a first-round pick in next week’s draft. He is hitting .356 with five triples, 17 doubles, 40 RBIs and 45 stolen bases, and was named most valuable player of the regional after going 12 for 20.

Pitcher-designated hitter Brooks Kieschnick is batting .341 with eight homers, 19 doubles and 63 RBIs, and has a 10-2 pitching record with a 2.55 ERA. Third baseman Clay King is batting .327 with 51 RBIs, and catcher Chris Abbe has been a surprise for the Longhorns, batting .326 with 15 homers and 52 RBIs. Tim Harkrider is considered Texas’ best defensive shortstop since Spike Owen, and the Longhorns have great speed in the outfield.

There are no exceptional pitchers along the lines of former Longhorn standouts Roger Clemens and Greg Swindell, but the staff is solid with Kieschnick, Scott Harrison (11-2, 2.55 ERA) and relievers John Dickens (5-0, 1.63 ERA, three saves) and Chris Gaskill (5-2, 2.23 ERA, three saves).

4. CAL STATE FULLERTON

Record: 42-15.

Coach: Augie Garrido, 17th year.

Conference finish: Second in the Big West.

How advanced: Won South I Regional championship.

Ranking: Fifth by Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball.

Comment: The Titans dominated the regional, outscoring opponents, 35-3, in four games and batting .333 with three home runs, eight doubles, 29 RBIs and seven stolen bases. Having struggled to maintain a consistently high level of play throughout the regular season, Fullerton jelled at Baton Rouge, La., combining power, speed, excellent defense and solid pitching to gain its seventh College World Series berth since 1979.

Third baseman Phil Nevin, Baseball America’s college player of the year, leads the Titans with a .390 average, 20 homers and 75 RBIs, and catcher Jason Moler, most valuable player at the regional, is batting .374 with eight homers, 26 doubles and 58 RBIs. Center fielder Chris Powell, who bats second, and right fielder Jeremy Carr, who leads off, combined for 12 runs in the regional and team with left fielder Dante Powell to give Fullerton an extremely fast outfield.

Right-handed starters James Popoff (12-2, 2.94 ERA) and Dan Naulty (11-3, 3.53 ERA) head the pitching staff, and Chad Dembisky has been effective in relief.

5. FLORIDA STATE

Record: 48-19.

Coach: Mike Martin, 13th year.

Conference finish: Second in the Atlantic Coast.

How advanced: Won South II Regional championship.

Ranking: Ninth by Baseball America, sixth by Collegiate Baseball.

Comment: The Seminoles are making their 12th trip to Omaha since 1957 but are looking for their first national championship. Florida State was top-seeded in last season’s College World Series but lost its first two games.

Martin didn’t consider this one of his better teams, but it scrapped its way into the playoffs and through the regional, losing its first game, then winning five consecutive games.

The best player is Chris Roberts, who pitches, plays outfield and first base and is batting .300 with 12 homers and 59 RBIs. He is also 8-3 with a 2.20 ERA and 84 strikeouts. Other top offensive players are shortstop Link Jarrett (.339, 25 doubles), third baseman Nandy Serrano (.327, six homers, 45 RBIs) and outfielders Ty Mueller (.326, five homers, 40 RBIs) and Chris Brock (.323, 19 doubles, 47 RBIs).

Seminole outfielders threw three runners out at the plate during the regional. Junior right-hander Roger Bailey (15-4, 3.02 ERA) is the ace of a staff that includes Roberts and bullpen stopper Tim Davis (8-4, 2.48 ERA, 133 strikeouts in 105 innings).

6. OKLAHOMA

Record: 42-22.

Coach: Larry Cochell, second year.

Conference finish: First in the Big Eight.

How advanced: Won Mideast Regional championship.

Ranking: 10th by Baseball America, seventh by Collegiate Baseball.

Comment: When Cochell and pitching coach Vern Ruhle, a former Angel reliever, left Cal State Fullerton for Oklahoma in 1990, the Sooners had just finished last in the Big Eight. They improved to second place and earned a regional playoff berth in 1991 and took the program even further this season, gaining their first College World Series berth since 1976.

Oklahoma’s team batting average (.309) is the lowest since 1980, but the team has improved defensively and has gotten more consistent pitching. The top player is second baseman Brian Eldridge, a senior from Monroe High in Sepulveda. He is batting .391 with 23 homers and 77 RBIs. Outfielder Scott Marr is hitting .351 with five homers, 45 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. Former Laguna Hills High standout Mike Smedes, who signed with Fullerton but followed Cochell to Oklahoma, is batting .321 with three homers and 27 RBIs.

Junior right-hander Casey Mendenhall (11-1, 3.19 ERA) gave up only one earned run in 19 innings at the regional and became the first pitcher in school history to defeat every conference opponent.

7. PEPPERDINE

Record: 44-11-1.

Coach: Andy Lopez, fourth year.

Conference finish: Won West Coast.

How advanced: Won West Regional championship.

Ranking: Third by Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball.

Comment: The Waves, who are making their first College World Series appearance since 1979, have won 26 of their last 29 games and had a 15-game win streak ended by Hawaii in the regional. They came back and beat Hawaii, 9-0, for the regional title.

Pepperdine has been ranked among the nation’s leaders in pitching (3.20 team ERA) and defense (.973 fielding percentage) all season. Senior right-hander Patrick Ahearne (13-2, 2.66 ERA) and junior right-hander Steve Duda (9-1, 1.96 ERA) have been solid all year, and the staff has been bolstered by the addition of junior right-hander Derek Wallace, who missed most of April because of injuries he suffered in an automobile accident.

Center fielder Chris Sheff, a former Laguna Hills High standout, hit .474 with eight RBIs to earn regional MVP honors and improve his season average to .350. He also has 10 homers and 42 RBIs. Other top batters are catcher Kevin Dell’Amico (.367), first baseman Dan Melendez (.352, 10 homers, 39 RBIs) and second baseman Steve Rodriguez (.350).

8. CALIFORNIA

Record: 35-26.

Coach: Bob Milano, 15th year.

Conference finish: Tied for third in the Pacific 10 Southern Division.

How advanced: Won East Regional championship.

Ranking: 14th by Baseball America, eighth by Collegiate Baseball.

Comment: When the NCAA pairings were announced May 18, many probably scoffed at the Golden Bears’ inclusion, since they were 31-25 during the regular season and lost six of their last seven games. That’s what happens when your coach is on the selection committee, many figured.

So no one was surprised when Cal lost its first regional game to Texas A&M;, 15-6. But the Bears showed they belonged in the tournament, winning their next four games to advance to their fifth College World Series. Cal, which won national titles in 1947 and ‘57, came back to beat Texas A&M;, 11-4, for the region championship.

The Bears have relied heavily on their offense, which is led by Troy Penix (.370, 21 homers, 76 RBIs), John Zuber (.360, 11 homers, 47 RBIs), Chris Clapinski (.374, eight homers, 40 RBIs) and former Placentia El Dorado High standout Matt Luke (.368, 10 homers, 58 RBIs). Brad Brown (7-4, 5.70 ERA), Mike Cather (6-6, 5.42 ERA) and Zuber (6-3, 4.82, four saves) are the top pitchers, but the Bears have a team ERA of 5.60.