2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament: USA Today tabs biggest winners, losers from Regional play

The 2026 NCAA Baseball Tournament Regionals were ones to remember. Seven of the top-16 national seeds failed to advance to Super Regional play, including the top-two national seeds (No. 1 UCLA and No. 2 Georgia Tech).

Along with these shocking results, the games delivered big-time. Multiple all-time classics were played in Regionals, including two amazing Regional Final games between West Virginia and Kentucky, the Atlanta Regional Final between Georgia Tech and Oklahoma which ended with a walk-off Sooner bomb, and Troy‘s stunning 10-2 win over No. 8 Florida in the Gainesville Regional Final.

Here are USA Today’s biggest winners and losers from NCAA Tournament Regional play.

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Winner: Little Rock and St. John’s

Give it up for the No. 4 seeds. Little Rock and St. John’s shocked the college baseball world by winning their respective Regionals from the bottom of the bracket. The Trojans went 3-0 in the Hattiesburg Regional, running through No. 1 Southern Miss and No. 3 Jacksonville State twice to clinch the first Super Regional berth in program history. St. John’s, meanwhile, downed No. 1 seed Florida State twice and put up 21 runs on No. 3 Northern Illinois en route to its first Super Regional appearance since 2012. Little Rock has never reached the Men’s College World Series, while St. John’s hasn’t advanced to Omaha in 46 years (1980).

Loser: UCLA

For the second consecutive season, the No. 1 overall national seed failed to reach Super Regional play. The Bruins entered the Los Angeles Regional with six losses in 57 total games this season. In that Regional, however, they lost two of their three games and saw their season come to an extremely disappointing end. They boasted the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft (Roch Cholowsky), but it wasn’t good enough to reach a Super Regional for the second consecutive season. No. 3 seed Cal Poly, instead, came out on top in the Regional, and will face No. 16 national seed West Virginia in Morgantown for a spot in the Men’s College World Series.

Winner: West Virginia

Speaking of West Virginia, the Mountaineers are tabbed as one of the biggest winners of Regional play. The Morgantown Regional was surely the most entertaining Regional in this year’s Tournament, as it concluded with two all-time games against No. 3 seed Kentucky. WVU overcame a ninth inning three-run deficit in the first game of the Regional Final to force a second game, which saw it walk off the Wildcats in extra innings to clinch a Morgantown Super Regional for the first time ever. It will now have to go through Cal Poly to clinch its first ever MCWS appearance.

Loser: Georgia Tech

Through two games of the Atlanta Regional, it seemed that the Jackets were going to cruise to a Super Regional appearance. They dominated No. 4 seed UIC 22-5 in game one, and downed No. 2 seed Oklahoma 9-3 in game two. The two Atlanta Regional Final games were disastrous for Georgia Tech, however, as it fell to Oklahoma in both games. By failing to reach the Super as the No. 2 overall national seed, it marked the second consecutive season that the No. 1 and No. 2 national seeds failed to reach the Super Regional.

Winner: North Carolina

North Carolina is back in a Super Regional for the fourth time in the past five seasons after cruising through the Chapel Hill Regional. It opened Regional play with an 8-0 shutout of No. 4 seed VCU, and dispatched of No. 3 seed East Carolina in two games to clinch the Regional victory. Led by head coach Scott Forbes, the Tar Heels are seeking their second Men’s College World Series appearance in the past three seasons, and their first ever National Championship.

Loser: Nebraska

Nebraska, the No. 13 overall national seed, opened Lincoln Regional play with a 4-1 victory over No. 4 seed South Dakota State. Sitting pretty at 1-0, the Cornhuskers proceeded to lose to No. 2 Ole Miss and No. 3 Arizona State in consecutive games, ending their season. Nebraska, which made three Men’s College World Series appearances from 2001-2005, has now failed to win a Regional since 2005. That marks 11 consecutive Regional appearances without a victory for Nebraska.

Winner: Oregon

The Oregon Ducks are Regional Champions for the third time in the past four seasons after cruising through the Eugene Regional as the No. 11 overall national seed. Oregon dominated No. 4 seed Yale 14-2 in its Regional opener, and downed No. 3 Washington State and No. 2 Oregon State to clinch the win. The Ducks will now do battle against No. 6 national seed Texas in Austin, as they seek their first Men’s College World Series appearance in 72 years (1954).

Loser: 2025 Men’s College World Series field

For the first time ever in the history of the Men’s College World Series, all eight teams from last year’s event failed to advance to the Super Regionals this season. Four of the eight participants failed to even reach the Tournament this year (Arizona, Louisville, LSU, and Murray State), while the other four fell in Regional play (Arkansas, Coastal Carolina, Oregon State, and UCLA). Of the 16 teams remaining in this year’s NCAA Tournament, four are seeking their first ever Men’s College World Series appearance (Cal Poly, Little Rock, Troy, and West Virginia).