HATTIESBURG – The Southern Miss Golden Eagles did not have to wait long Monday morning to discover where they be playing their next baseball game.

But while the suspense was mitigated, the actual destination turned out to be a bit of a surprise.

Southern Miss was in the fourth pairing announced on the televised NCAA Baseball Selection Show, one of four teams slotted into the regional in Tallahassee, Fla.

“I wasn’t really paying attention, and I glanced up and saw we were playing South Alabama,” senior first baseman Tim Lynch said, “and I was like, ‘Well, alright.’

“Now, at least, we don’t have to sit around and the rest of these bad commercials to find out where we are playing.”

The second-seeded Golden Eagles (40-18) indeed will face a familiar foe in the opening round when they take on the third-seeded Jaguars (40-20) at 11 a.m. Friday at Dick Howser Stadium.

Top-seeded host Florida State (37-20) will face fourth-seeded Alabama State (38-15) at 5 p.m. Friday.

The Golden Eagles, who were crowned Conference USA tournament champions after their 3-2 win over No. 24 Rice Sunday afternoon at Pete Taylor Park, dropped back-to-back midweek games to the Jaguars in early March.

South Alabama defeated Southern Miss 9-3 on March 1 in Mobile, Ala., before taking a 4-2 victory the next night over the Golden Eagles at MGM Park in Biloxi, Miss.

“I think there’s an advantage there,” said sophomore designated hitter Daniel Keating, who was voted the 2016 C-USA Baseball Championship Most Valuable Player and one four Golden Eagles named C-USA All-Tournament.

“You know what you’re going to get, going into it, so you know what to expect.”

Southern Miss, which was ranked 18th in the most recent (May 29) NCAA Ratings Percentage Index, will be making its first postseason baseball trip to Tallahassee after previous assignments in Baton Rouge, La; Austin, Texas; Tuscaloosa, Ala; Oxford, Miss;, Atlanta, Ga.; and Auburn, Ala.

The Golden Eagles earned a NCAA regional berth for 13th time in the program’s history, but the first time since 2011.

Coach Scott Berry said being omitted from the field in 2015 provided plenty of motivation for the players this spring.

“Last year left a bad taste in our mouths, and we played with a chip on our shoulder all year,” Berry said. “That’s the quickest that I’ve ever seen our name come up, but it was exciting to see Southern Miss’ name up there and brought back a lot of good memories.

“I’m very, very proud of our guys and our coaching staff to have this opportunity.”

FSU, which was ranked 13th in the RPI, is has not missed the NCAA baseball postseason since 1977. The Seminoles are making their 54th regional appearance, including hosting for a 33rd time.

The Seminoles, once foes of Southern Miss in the Metro Conference, finished second during the 2016 regular season in the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Atlantic Division before dropping an 18-13 decision to Clemson in the ACC Tournament title game.

“It’s an awesome baseball environment, great baseball tradition,” senior center fielder Jake Sandlin said. “We’re looking to go down there and get some wins.”

South Alabama, which was ranked 50th in the RPI, finished as regular-season Sun Belt Conference co-champions with Louisiana-Lafayette. The Jaguars fell to Georgia State in the semifinals of the Sun Belt tourney.

Alabama State, which was ranked 158th in the RPI, finished 24-0 in Southwestern Athletic Conference play during the regular season and then won the SWAC tournament title.

Southern Miss. Sports Information