May 31, 2004

QUEENS, N.Y. - Packed into the athletic training room in the basement of Alumni Hall, the St. John's baseball team waited for the announcement of the NCAA Tournament selections like a little kid on Christmas Eve.

When the ESPN television crew announced that the Red Storm had made the tournament - the Road to Omaha - some 30-plus members of the team, including players, coaches, and administrators, erupted into cheers and screams of pleasure.

For this St. John's team, it capped off an anxious three days during which they hoped and prayed the NCAA would award the team with a spot in the 64-team tournament. The Red Storm finished in second place in the BIG EAST, the sixth-best conference in the country according to national ratings, and the team had posted some impressive wins against top competition.

The team got its reward on Monday afternoon, as St. John's was placed as the No. 3 seed in the Palo Alto Regional, where they will face off against Long Beach State, the No. 18 team in the country and runner-up in the Big West Conference, on Friday at 5 p.m. (ET) at Sunken Diamond on the campus of Stanford University. The nightcap will feature host Stanford, the No. 1 team in the country with a 44-12 record, and UNLV (37-22), the Mountain West Tournament Champion.

Games on Saturday will be played at 2 p.m. (ET), 6 p.m. (ET) and 10 p.m. (ET), with the championship game slated for 4 p.m. on Sunday. For ticket information, please call 1-800-STANFORD.

The winner of this regional will play the winner of the Notre Dame regional, which includes UC-Irvine, Kent State and Arizona, beginning on June 11.

"It's been an anxious few days," St. John's Head Coach Ed Blankmeyer said. "I wasn't sure what to expect, but I was just hoping and praying that these kids would get another chance. They are one of the best groups I've ever had and we're looking forward to this great opportunity."

This will be the first NCAA Regional appearance for St. John's (36-21 overall, 17-9 BIG EAST) since 1997, and the program's 13th appearance since 1976. St. John's, which has made six College World Series appearances, is 52-49 all-time in NCAA Tournament action.

This is the first at-large selection for Blankmeyer in 25 years of coaching at the collegiate level, including 16 years as an assistant at Seton Hall.

The Red Storm have been led by a balanced attack on offense, with senior shortstop Mike Rozema, a third-team All-American selection in 2003, leading the way. One of the Red Storm's co-captains, Rozema is batting .322 with a team-high 22 stolen bases. He is one of eight starters batting over .300, including junior third baseman Jim Martin, who is batting a team-best .357, and junior catcher Joe Burke (Brooklyn, N.Y.), a second-team All-BIG EAST selection who is batting .337.

The pitching staff has been led by sophomore Anthony Varvaro (Staten Island, N.Y.), a second-team All-BIG EAST selection who carries an 8-3 record and a 3.80 earned run average.

The Red Storm will be hosting an open practice to all media members on Tuesday, June 1 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The Ballpark at St. John's on the Queens campus. The team will be departing for California on Wednesday.