Junior infielder Mason Katz was befuddled.
When asked if he knew Stony Brook’s mascot, the New Orleans native just stared at the sky and hoped one of his teammates could assist him with the seemingly difficult question.
Luckily for LSU and head coach Paul Mainieri, the Tigers are more familiar with the Stony Brook team than the mythical seawolf mascot.
The Tigers (46-16) will welcome the Long Island, N.Y., based Stony Brook University to Alex Box Stadium for a super regional after the Seawolves won the Coral Gables Regional by ousting host Miami, Fla., and beating Central Florida in a deciding game Monday.
“It doesn’t matter what the name is on their shirt,” Maineri said. “Anybody who would think to take Stony Brook lightly is way off base.”
The Seawolves come to Baton Rouge as champions of the America East conference and as the only team in Division I baseball with 50 victories, winning 26 out of their last 28 games.
Coincidentally, senior infielders Austin Nola and Tyler Hanover, Katz and sophomore pitcher Ryan Eades played with or against several current Stony Brook players last summer in the Cape Cod Baseball League.
“They’re hard nosed, solid players,” Nola said. “I hope the fans know that these guys are good. This is not going to be what they think it is.”
The Seawolves have eight players hitting over .300, highlighted by centerfielder Travis Jankowski, who is batting .417 with 101 hits. Jankowski was also selected 44th overall in the MLB Draft by the San Diego Padres on Monday.
“It seems like they’ve got a very balanced lineup, tough outs one through nine,” Mainieri said. “The pitching is decent, maybe not overpowering, but they’re playing with a lot of confidence.”
Tyler Johnson leads the Seawolves on the mound with an 11-1 record and a 2.13 ERA over 88.2 innings pitched. Four other Stony Brook hurlers boast ERAs under 3.00 and have a combined record of 19-3.
Outside of the statistics, Katz pointed to a certain “swagger” that teams from the North seem to possess.
“They don’t get down. Their spirits are always high,” Katz said. “If Gausman goes out there and strikes out ten, they’re going to be the same as if he doesn’t get anyone out.”
Mainieri echoed Katz’s sentiment, saying he’s prepared the team for the possibility of a loud Seawolf dugout and some actions that could be perceived as “cocky.”
Although the super regional is slated for an 11 a.m. start on both Friday and Saturday and a noon start if necessary on Sunday, Katz doesn’t think that will deter the team or its fans.
“This is as big as it gets,” Katz said. “I don’t care if we’re playing a high school team, we have to win to get to Omaha.”
Contact Chandler Rome at [email protected].