Despite losing four of its last five games of the season, the Georgia baseball team earned the right to host an NCAA Regional. But to win it, it will most likely run up against a familiar rival.

The regional will feature SEC Champion Georgia (35-21-1), ACC rival Georgia Tech (39-19), Big East Champion Louisville (41-19) and Atlantic Sun Champion Lipscomb (32-28), the NCAA announced Monday.

The Bulldogs, who garnered a number eight national seed, will face the Lipscomb Bisons at 3 p.m. Friday while the Yellow Jackets battle the Cardinals at 7 p.m.

The Athens Regional winner is matched up with the Raleigh (N.C) Regional winner as that field includes host N.C. State, South Carolina, UNC-Charlotte and James Madison. The NCAA Super Regionals are set for June 6-9 and those eight winners advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., from June 14-25.

The Bulldogs are making their ninth NCAA postseason appearance in school history including their fourth under David Perno, who was recently named the 2008 SEC Coach of the Year. Perno now has taken more Bulldog teams to the NCAA postseason than any baseball coach in school history.

The Bulldogs have hosted three NCAA Regionals (2001, 2004 and 2006) at Foley Field and won every one of them, posting a combined 11-3 mark.

“We’re very excited to be one of the national seeds, and I think we were rewarded for being SEC Champions and playing one of the nation’s toughest schedules,” said Perno. “I am proud and happy for the team, they played excellent baseball for 90 percent of the regular season. We were not punished for not playing that well at the end when we had the SEC title locked up and were banged up at the SEC Tournament. We split with Florida State at their place and beat LSU twice in Baton Rouge during the season and they are national seeds.

“It will be a challenge, we’ve got a tough regional, but I’m not complaining too much. They are called ‘regionals,’ so I knew we had a chance to see Georgia Tech again, and we’ve faced Louisville recently too,” Perno added. “We know each other and we’ll start preparing for Lipscomb today.”

The Bulldogs have faced Tech in four previous NCAA appearances (1987, 2001 and 2002 Regionals and 2004 Super Regional). In NCAA meetings, Georgia is 4-2 against Tech. Georgia went 1-2 versus the Yellow Jackets this season and last faced Louisville in 2006 in Athens, sweeping a three-game set. The Bulldogs are 1-0 against the Cardinals in NCAA Regional action, beating them at the 2002 NCAA Atlanta Regional. This will be the first meeting with Lipscomb. The eight national seeds are Miami, North Carolina, Arizona State, Florida State, Cal State Fullerton, Rice, LSU and Georgia

2008 NCAA Baseball Athens Regional Schedule
Friday, May 30
Game 1: Lipscomb vs. GEORGIA, 3 p.m. ET
Game 2: Georgia Tech vs. Louisville, 7 p.m. ET
Saturday, May 31
Game 3: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2, 3 p.m. ET
Game 4: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2, 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, June 1
Game 5: Loser of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 3, 2 p.m. ET
Game 6: Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5, 6 p.m. ET
*Monday, June 2 (*If Necessary)
Game 7: Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 6, 7 p.m. ET

- Georgia Sports Communications