College World Series Nears End with Gamecocks-Gators Final

The College World Series bracket has two teams left standing, with as many as three games left between them. So far, the scores in Omaha have all favored South Carolina and Florida, yet one of them will lose their first game Monday night. But in this stage of the Series, the Gamecocks and Gators can afford to lose one game, as long as they don't lose two.

For the ninth straight year, the last two schools will hold a best-of-three final, although this is the most unique pairing yet. This time around, two SEC rivals are squaring off after having been perfect so far in Omaha. Either South Carolina will claim its second straight national championship or Florida will take its first in school history.

The scores so far in the tournament have been quite similar for the finalists, each team easily winn its first two games then sweating out victories in the semifinals against teams they already beat. The Gators needed to survive a late rally by Vanderbilt to win by 6-4, and the Gamecocks only got a second win over Virginia after 13 innings.

But fortunately for South Carolina and Florida, they each got two full days of rest after their hard-fought semifinal victories. Now they are fully recharged and ready to fight for the crown, with Game 1 on Monday, Game 2 on Tuesday, and a potential winner-take-all Game 3 Wednesday night.

If recent history means anything, however, then the Gamecocks won't need an extra game to win another title. Not only has South Carolina won in its last nine College World Series games, it hasn't lost in the NCAA tournament at all since its opening loss at Omaha in 2010. The 14-0 postseason streak is the longest in college baseball history, which gives another edge to the defending champion.

After rallying from the depths in 2010, the Gamecocks have stormed through the bracket in 2011. But if any team is capable of knocking South Carolina off, it might be Florida; the Gators were favored all season to get this far. It has been championship-or-bust for Florida this year, especially since the school is still looking for its first baseball title, unlike South Carolina.

But despite being the No. 1 team in both the preseason and the end of the regular season, the postseason is something else altogether. In the last two years, no one has thrived under that spotlight more than South Carolina, especially at the College World Series. As such, if this year's bracket is going to look different than the last one at the end, Florida will need to shatter its rival's invincibility in a hurry.

Monday's score won't determine a champion, yet the Gators' route will look much tougher with an opening loss. Florida will try to avoid that at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Sources

Yahoo Sports- "2011 College World Series results, schedule"

Baseball America- "CWS Finals Preview"