BATON ROUGE — The LSU baseball team (36-20) learned Monday that it’s season would not continue into June, as the six-time national champions were left without an at-large bid to the 2011 NCAA Tournament.
COMMENTS FROM LSU COACH PAUL MAINIERI AFTER TIGERS WERE NOT INCLUDED IN NCAA TOURNAMENT FIELD
“There’s a human element involved, and there’s nothing you can ever take for granted but, honestly, I thought we were in the tournament.
“The one thing about our players is they gave it their best every day, and even on the heels of some very difficult losses, they came back the next day with a lot of energy, enthusiasm and hustle, and they played hard every day. They never quit, so my heart really bleeds for them.
“This team clearly deserved to be in the NCAA Tournament, and I’m so disappointed for the kids that they don’t get the opportunity to do so. The disappointment of today will be a very strong motivator for our team as we go forward. I know we don’t want to feel like this ever again. I don’t think we should be feeling like this, quite frankly, but we left the decision in the hands of people.
“I’ve identified the areas in which we need to improve, and we hope to be much improved next year.”