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| Vol. 18, No. 33 | May 27, 1999 |
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| Vol. 18, No. 33 | May 27, 1999 |
The America East champion University of Delaware baseball team will make its 13th venture into the NCAA tournament this weekend, as the No. 4 seed Blue Hens take on the host and top seed Arkansas Razorbacks at 8 p.m., Friday, May 28, in the 7,000-seat Baum Stadium.
Delaware (35-23), which won its second straight America East title with a doubleheader sweep over top seed Towson Saturday, will be making its fifth trip to the NCAA Tournament this decade. The Hens advanced to their only College World Series appearance in 1970.
The four-team double elimination tournament, one of 16 regionals nationally involving 64 teams, will get under way at 2 p.m., Friday with No. 2 seed Clemson (37-24) taking on No. 3 seed Southwest Missouri State (36-17). Action continues on Saturday with the loser's bracket game at 11 a.m. The finals will be held Sunday at 2 p.m. The 16 regional winners will advance to play in eight, best-of-three super regionals June 4-6. Those eight winners will advance to the College World Series in Omaha, June 11-19.
The Blue Hens, led by 35th-year head coach Bob Hannah who reached his 1,000th career victory this season, qualified for the NCAA Tournament despite a 1-11 start, the worst start ever in school history.
But the team rebounded to post a 19-9 record in league play and won the tournament title after losing to Towson in the second round.
"We look forward to playing," said Hannah, who ranks 22nd on the all-time Division I college coaching list with 1,016 wins. "Arkansas is athletic and always has a very good ball club, Clemson is synonymous with outstanding Division I baseball, and Southwest Missouri is a competitive team. This will be a tough regional.
"We will have to go in and play as well as we can play. This is a reward for a remarkable season. We have come back from the depths of what could have been a disastrous season."
WDEL radio, 1150 AM, will provide updates on the game. 
