GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Florida Ballpark, the home of the ninth-ranked Florida Gators baseball program, was listed as one of 20 potential sites to host an NCAA Regional in the upcoming 2021 NCAA Baseball Tournament, as announced by the NCAA on Friday<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.ncaa.com_news_baseball_article_2021-2D05-2D13_division-2Di-2Dbaseball-2Dcommittee-2Dannounces-2Dchampionship-2Dhost-2Dsites&d=DwIF-g&c=sJ6xIWYx-zLMB3EPkvcnVg&r=o5LKAX7slotfFMyE71jI7L22NYBIi1-KbRGNSXudTPo&m=EKMB7xpnupHDBvsAbmXjTX0VZqe3aDu_BA_kEjuqfz4&s=8lh1woqRGa4Zj_ZM7B1EfRIpG6JpNcSCkDfeYWiDWAw&e= >.
NCAA Regionals are scheduled to be held from June 4-7 across 16 different host sites. Out of the 20 potential host sites announced today, 16 regional sites will be determined at the time of the team selection process, which is expected to be announced at approximately 9 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 30 via NCAA Social Media and the ESPN Bottom Line. Eight of those 16 regional sites will host Super Regionals.
The Gators have hosted an NCAA Regional on nine separate occasions since head coach Kevin O’Sullivan’s arrival in Gainesville prior to the 2008 campaign. From 2014-18 in particular, Florida hosted five consecutive NCAA Regionals. If Florida is selected as a 2021 NCAA Regional host site, it will mark the first-ever postseason play hosted at Florida Ballpark, which is currently in the midst of its inaugural season.
64 total teams will be selected for the NCAA Tournament on May 30, with the 16 teams chosen as host schools welcoming three visiting teams to each site. Four teams will compete across each of those 16 NCAA Regional sites to determine which 16 programs will advance to NCAA Super Regionals, scheduled for June 11-14.
No. 9 Florida currently sits in third place in the SEC East standings with a 33-15 overall record and 15-9 mark in SEC play. The Gators will host Georgia in a three-game series this upcoming weekend from May 14-16 prior to closing out the regular season with a visit to No. 1 Arkansas from May 20-22. The 2021 SEC Tournament will take place from May 25-30, concluding the same day as the formal team selection announcement from the NCAA.
Due to the health and safety protocols surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, it was deemed necessary to conduct NCAA championship competition at predetermined sites.
Ticketing and parking information will be released at a later date should Florida Ballpark be officially selected as one of the 16 host sites for a 2021 NCAA Regional.
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