PROVO — After BYU won an emotional, hard-fought Mountain West Conference Tournament baseball title Saturday in San Diego, coach Vance Law cried tears of happiness.
The bliss continued Monday afternoon when his Cougars received an automatic bid to the 64-team NCAA Regional Baseball Championships.
Third-seeded BYU (38-20) will face second-seeded Rutgers (40-15) Friday at 6 p.m. in double-elimination regional action at the University of Nebraska. In the other game at that site, top-seeded Nebraska (45-14) hosts fourth-seeded Northern Iowa (34-26) at 11 a.m.
The Cougars, who earned their first postseason appearance since 1994, gathered in the Cougar Room at LaVell Edwards Stadium Monday to watch the selection show on television.
"My reaction was joy," Law said, "to see the guys jumping up and down. I'm more excited for them than myself. I'm especially happy for the seniors. It's a great experience for them."
Since the season opened, BYU has had its sights on the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. Turns out, the Cougars will begin the quest to reach Omaha in Lincoln, some 50 miles away.
"We'd like to stick around in Nebraska for a while," said pitcher Nate Fernley, who guided BYU to victory in the championship game against San Diego State and was named MWC Tournament MVP. Fernley owns the nation's best record (16-2) and could start Friday against the Scarlet Knights. "Since Day One our goal has been not to just get into the tournament but to go to the College World Series," he said.
"We're pretty confident," said BYU outfielder Shane Belliston, who served an LDS mission in New Jersey and spent time on the Rutgers campus. "We're excited to be in this tournament, but we're not satisfied. Our goal is to go to Omaha. We're a long ways away from that, but this is a step in the right direction."
The Cougars have defeated four teams that were also included in the field of 64 — Fresno State, Cal-Fullerton, Cal-Berkeley and Oral Roberts.
"We've beaten good teams on the road that are in the tournament," Belliston said. "We can beat anyone in the nation."
Law, who was hired two years ago, said he never had any timetable for BYU's return to the postseason. But, he acknowledged, "This has come on very quickly."
Law took over a team that finished 26-31 in 1999, and last season the Cougars posted a 29-29 mark. Though BYU enjoyed a solid campaign in 2001, Law said his team wouldn't have qualified for a postseason berth without winning the conference tournament. "We felt all along we needed to win the tournament to get in," he said. BYU was the only MWC team invited to the NCAAs.
BYU President Merrill J. Bateman addressed the Cougars Monday and congratulated them on their accomplishments. "We're glad we're back (in the NCAAs)," he said. "This is just the beginning."
Sophomore outfielder Matt Carson, who missed most of the MWC Tournament due to back spasms, says he'll be ready to play this week. Carson has hit a team-high 18 home runs.
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