Good Friday morning, Dawg fans!! We have officially reached the Road to Omaha as the Georgia Diamond Dawgs and 63 other teams begin their quest for a National Championship, with Regional tournaments starting up today, including in Athens.
Game one of the Athens Regional will feature the Liberty Flames from Conference USA taking on the Boston College Eagles from the ACC. Let’s start with Liberty. The Flames have put together a very solid 2026 season so far, compiling a 41-19 record and falling just short of a Conference USA Tournament Championship against Jacksonville State.
Liberty is led offensively by senior outfielder Nick Barone and junior infielder Tanner Marsh. Marsh leads the team in batting average and on-base percentage, hitting .333 with a .418 OBP while also swiping 22 bags. Barone provides the power in the lineup, blasting 12 home runs to go along with his .320 batting average, impressive 1.000 OPS, and 55 RBIs.
On the mound, Ben Blair stands out for the Flames. Blair leads the team in strikeouts with 106 in 15 appearances while posting a 3.61 ERA during that span.
The Boston College Eagles also put together a strong 2026 season, finishing with a 36-21 record and earning a top-four seed in the ACC Tournament before eventually falling to the Miami Hurricanes in the Finals. The Eagles are led offensively by graduate senior infielder Nick Wang and sophomore infielder Julio Solier.
Solier has hit an impressive .357 while posting a .436 OBP and stealing 28 bags, making him a major threat once he gets on base. Wang supplies the power for the Eagles lineup, leading the team with 16 home runs and 61 RBIs while batting .303.
On the mound, A.J. Colarusso has carried the bulk of the workload for Boston College with 15 starts. During that span, Colarusso has posted a 4.62 ERA while leading the team with 71 strikeouts.
Liberty vs. Boston College is set to begin today at 12:00 p.m. ET and can be viewed on ESPN+.
Now, moving on to our Georgia Diamond Dawgs. Georgia will begin its Road to Omaha in an opening matchup against the Sharks of Long Island University. The Sharks have compiled a 30-20 overall record in 2026 and are coming off a Northeast Conference Championship.
Offensively, the Sharks feature a quality lineup with six players batting over .300, although there is not a ton of power throughout the lineup. Nick Matson, Elijah Fairchild, and Ryan Rivera will lead the way offensively for Long Island, as all three are hitting over .350. However, it will be interesting to see how they match up against Georgia’s SEC-caliber arms.
As for the pitching staff, the Sharks are led by Nicholas Finarelli. Finarelli has made 14 starts for Long Island and has posted a 4.96 ERA with 91 strikeouts during that span. Finarelli and the rest of the Sharks’ pitching staff will certainly have their hands full against Georgia’s potent lineup.
As for Georgia, it has been an exciting last few days for Dawg Nation. The Dawgs are coming off their first SEC Tournament Championship in program history and earned the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament following an impressive 46-12 season. However, Georgia and the rest of Dawg Nation know that the job is NOT finished.
Georgia is led offensively by several standout players, but none stand out more than SEC Triple Crown winner Daniel Jackson. Jackson enters regionals boasting a stat line that includes a .391 batting average, .485 OBP, 78 RBIs, and 27 home runs. The rest of Georgia’s lineup will look to carry over the momentum from the SEC Tournament and continue producing at a high level throughout the NCAA Tournament. Honestly, I could list every player producing at the plate for Georgia, but that would require a completely separate article.
On the mound, the Dawgs will be led by Joey Volchko. Volchko has been Georgia’s number-one arm all season, posting a 4.18 ERA while recording 88 strikeouts and earning nine wins. While the ERA may seem a little high, Volchko possesses Major League-level stuff to go along with his Major League frame.
Alongside Volchko, Georgia’s bullpen has stepped up tremendously, especially Caden Aoki and Justin Byrd, both of whom had excellent SEC Tournaments. With such a dangerous lineup, Georgia will only go as far as its pitching allows, and hopefully, this staff is beginning to hit its stride at the perfect time to send the Dawgs to their first trip to Omaha since 2008.
Georgia vs. Long Island is slated to start at 5 p.m. ET and can be viewed on ESPN+.
Enjoy the rest of your Friday and have a great weekend. As always, GO DAWGS!!!
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