Of the five, Hoverson is the closest to hoisting the Walnut and Bronze. A transfer from St. Cloud St., Hoverson and his Winona St. teammates are making quite a scene at the Division II National Championships. Unranked heading into the tournament, Winona St. knocked off Central Missouri, 4-3, in the opening round and then stunned second-ranked Mt. Olive, 9-3. The Warriors are now playing for a spot in the National Championship game, needing to be beaten twice. Hoverson, who should be one of the first options to throw on Thursday in the bracket final, is 6-1 with a 4.19 ERA in 13 appearances (eight starts). The Warriors await the winner of Wednesday's Millersville-Mt. Olive elimination game.
The other four, teammates on two of the nation's top baseball programs, will begin their quest for a National Championship on Friday in the NCAA Division I regional tournament. Coincidentally, all four find themselves in the same regional; the Los Angeles Regional. UCLA will serve as the host for the regional and freshmen teammates Allen and Williams will be trying to help the Bruins back to the National Championship game; one they lost in last year. Williams has platooned at second base for the Bruins, playing in 27 games (19 starts) and hitting .213 (13-61) and has made just one error in 56 chances. Allen, mainly used as a pinch-hitter, is hitting .300 (3-10). The Bruins open the regional against fourth-seeded San Francisco on Friday.
Meanwhile, seeded third in the four-team regional, UC-Irvine is looking to get back to the College World Series for the first time since 2007. Both Litchfield and Gottschling have played key roles along the way for the Anteaters. A lefty reliever, Litchfield is currently tied for third all-time in school history for appearances in a season with 31. He's 2-1 with two saves and a 3.16 ERA in 37 innings pitched out of the bullpen. He's given up just 14 runs (13 earned) on the year and has struck out 31 to go along with only six walks. In 34 appearances (11 starts), Gottschling is hitting .282 (11-39) with a .462 on base percentage and has been flawless in the field in 29 chances. UC-Irvine opens NCAA play against second-seeded Fresno St. on Friday.
All eyes will be on these five athletes as they compete for college's top honor over the next three weeks. With any luck, Walla Walla will be able to welcome a National Champion to the Sweets this summer.
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