May 17, 1999

LOS ANGELES - The defending national champion USC baseball team will host a four-team NCAA Regional on May 28-30, the NCAA announced today. USC's three opponents will be named next Monday (May 24) when the NCAA announces the 64-team field.

"I am pleased to hear that USC has been selected as a regional site," USC Coach Mike Gillespie said. "I'm looking forward to finding out who our opponents will be. It will no doubt be a difficult field. We are excited to be playing in our own park instead of traveling to a variety of sites that we've been to over the years. It should prove to be a very exciting weekend and we hope that college baseball fans in Los Angeles will be attracted to it."

USC last hosted an NCAA Regional in 1991, when there were only eight regional sites. This is the first season featuring 16 regional sites and 64 teams (instead of eight and 48, respectively). The 16 regional winners will advance to eight two-team super regionals on the weekend of June 4-6. USC has also put in a bid to host a super regional.

A tournament pass, good for every game, costs $50 for adults and $30 for university students and children under 12. Single-game tickets on Friday and Saturday are $10 for adults and $7 for university students and children under 12. Sunday's single-game tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for university students and children under 12. Tickets can be purchased by calling the USC Ticket Office at (213) 740-GOSC.

The No. 14 Trojans completed the regular season with a 33-23 record, and placed second in the Pacific-10 Conference with a 17-7 mark.

USC and Pac-10 champion Stanford will host the only two regionals on the West Coast. The other 14 regional sites are: Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Florida State, Houston, LSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Wake Forest and Wichita State.

The tournament schedule is as follows:

Friday, May 28

Game 1 - 3 p.m. - USC vs. TBA

Game 2 - 7 p.m. - TBA vs. TBA

Saturday, May 29

Game 3 - 11 a.m. - Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2

Game 4 - 3 p.m. - Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2

Game 5 - 7 p.m. - Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4

Sunday, May 30

Game 6 - 12 p.m. - Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5

(Game 7, if necessary, is 45 minutes after end of Game 6)