The 1978 NCAA Division I baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1978 NCAA Division I baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the College World Series, a double-elimination tournament in its thirty-second year. Eight regional competitions were held to determine the participants in the final event. Seven regions held a four team, double-elimination tournament while one region included six teams, resulting in 34 teams participating in the tournament at the conclusion of their regular season, and in some cases, after a conference tournament. The thirty-second tournament's champion was Southern California, coached by Rod Dedeaux. The Most Outstanding Player was Rod Boxberger of Southern California.
Regionals The opening rounds of the tournament were played across eight regional sites across the country, seven consisting of four teams and one of six teams. The winners of each District advanced to the College World Series.
Bold indicates winner.
Atlantic Regional at Coral Gables, FL
Mideast Regional at Ann Arbor, MI
Midwest Regional at Tulsa, OK
Northeast Regional at Holyoke, MA
Rocky Mountain Regional at Tempe, AZ
South Regional at Auburn, AL
South Central Regional at Arlington, TX
West Regional at Los Angeles, CA
College World Series
Participants School Conference Record (conference) Head coach CWS appearances CWS best finish CWS record Arizona State WAC 53–10 (15–3) Jim Brock 9(last: 1977) 1st(1965, 1967, 1969, 1977) 34–14 SWC 32–17–2 (15–9) Mickey Sullivan 1(last: 1977) 8th(1977) 0–2 Miami (FL) n/a 48–10 (n/a) Ron Fraser 1(last: 1974) 2nd(1974) 3–2 Michigan Big 10 29–15 (13–3) Moby Benedict 2(last: 1962) 1st(1953) 8–1 North Carolina ACC 36–15 (9–3) Mike Roberts 2(last: 1966) 7th(1960) 0–4 n/a 44–10 (n/a) Larry Cochell 0(last: none) none 0–0 St. John's ECAC 40–16 (n/a) Joe Russo 4(last: 1968) 4th(1949, 1966, 1968) 5–8 Southern California Pac-8 49–9 (15–3) Rod Dedeaux 16(last: 1974) 1st(1948, 1958, 1961, 1963, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974) 58–19
Results
Bracket
Game results
Date Game Winner Score Loser Notes June 2 Game 1 Michigan 4–0 Game 2 Southern California 9–3 Miami (FL) June 3 Game 3 11–0 North Carolina Game 4 Arizona State 13–2 St. John's Game 5 Miami (FL) 12–1 Baylor eliminated June 4 Game 6 North Carolina 9–5 St. John's St. John's eliminated Game 7 Southern California 11–3 Michigan Game 8 Arizona State 7–6 June 5 Game 9 North Carolina 7–6 Michigan Michigan eliminated Game 10 Miami (FL) 5–3 Oral Roberts eliminated June 6 Game 11 Southern California 5–2 Arizona State June 7 Game 12 Arizona State 11–3 Miami (FL) Miami eliminated Game 13 Southern California 3–2 North Carolina North Carolina eliminated June 8 Final Southern California 10–3 Arizona State Southern California wins CWS
All-Tournament Team The following players were members of the All-Tournament Team.
Position Player School P Rod Boxberger (MOP) USC Casey Lindsey Arizona State C Chris Bando Arizona State 1B Dave Hostetler USC 2B Mike Fox 3B Bob Horner Arizona State SS Doug Stokke USC OF Tim Tolman USC John Wells USC Steve Michael Arizona State DH Randy Guerra Miami (FL)
Notable players Arizona State: Jamie Allen, Chris Bando, Hubie Brooks, Bob Horner, Dave Hudgens Baylor: Andy Beene, Jaime Cocanower, Fritzie Connally, Jon Perlman Miami (FL): Tony Brewer Michigan: Steve Howe, Rick Leach North Carolina: Dwight Lowry, Mike Fox Oral Roberts: George Bjorkman, Ron Meridith Southern California: Bill Bordley, Dave Engle, Dave Hostetler, Jeff Schattinger, Bob Skube, Chris Smith, Tim Tolman, Dave Van Gorder St. John's: Michael Beatrice, Doug LaTrenta
Tournament notes Chris Bando appears in his fourth College World Series.
See also 1978 NCAA Division II baseball tournament 1978 NCAA Division III baseball tournament 1978 NAIA World Series
References