Getting to the College World Series requires winning a bunch of games against very good opponents. The eight qualifiers have shown their ability to navigate two weekends’ worth of tough competition with little or no blemishes.

Arizona made it to Omaha all but one year from 1954-60 and won its three titles in the 1970s and 1980s across five CWS appearances. After missing it 17 consecutive times between 1987 and 2003, the Wildcats returned to the CWS in 2004, marking their first of five appearances this century. Four of those trips have come since 2012.

Before the NCAA Baseball Tournament began, we asked our readers how well they thought Arizona would do. Considering the Wildcats had gone 0-2 in the previous two tourneys, it would be understandable if the expectations were low.