| Season | 1971 |
|---|---|
| Teams | 21 |
| Finals site |
|
| Champions | Florida Southern (1st title) |
| Runner-up | Central Michigan (1st CWS Appearance) |
| Winning coach | Hal Smeltzly (1st title) |
| MOP | Greg Pryor & Kevin Bryant (Florida Southern) |
The 1971 NCAA College Division baseball tournament decided the champion of baseball at the NCAA College Division level for the 1971 season. This was the fourth such tournament for the College Division, having separated from the University Division in 1957. The Florida Southern Moccasins won the championship by defeating the Central Michigan. [1]
Twenty one teams were selected to participate, divided into four regions. Two regions consisted of six teams, another had five, and the West had four. Each region completed a double-elimination round, with the winners advancing to the finals. The finals, made up of the four regional champions, also competed in a double-elimination format.
| Team | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| Florida Southern | 3 | 0 |
| Old Dominion | 2 | 1 |
| Saint Leo | 1 | 1 |
| Springfield | 1 | 2 |
| Ithaca | 1 | 2 |
| Upsala | 0 | 2 |
| Team | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| Central Michigan | 4 | 1 |
| SIU Edwardsville | 3 | 2 |
| Louisiana Tech | 3 | 2 |
| Tennessee–Martin | 1 | 2 |
| Chattanooga | 0 | 2 |
| Marietta | 0 | 2 |
| Team | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| Mankato State | 3 | 0 |
| Northern Colorado | 3 | 2 |
| St. Cloud State | 2 | 2 |
| Central Missouri | 0 | 2 |
| Luther (IA) | 0 | 2 |
| Team | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| San Diego | 3 | 0 |
| Valley State | 2 | 2 |
| Puget Sound | 1 | 2 |
| UC Irvine | 0 | 2 |
| School | Conference | Record (conference) | Head coach | Previous finals appearances | Best finals finish | Finals record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Michigan | Independent | 35–7–1 | Dave Keilitz | 0 (last: none) | none | 0–0 |
| Florida Southern | Independent | 34–4 | Hal Smeltzly | 1 (last: 1969) | 3rd | 1–2 |
| Mankato State | North Central | 22–12 (14–6) | Jean McCarthy | 0 (last: none) | none | 0–0 |
| San Diego | Independent | 34–12 | John Cunningham | 0 (last: none) | none | 0–0 |
| First round | Semi-finals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| San Diego | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Florida Southern | 4 | |||||||||||||
| San Diego | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Central Michigan | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Central Michigan | 9 | |||||||||||||
| Mankato State | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Central Michigan | 6 | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Florida Southern | 9 | 4 | ||||||||||||
| Lower round 1 | Lower final | |||||||||||||
| San Diego | 4 | |||||||||||||
| Florida Southern | 6 | Florida Southern | 11 | |||||||||||
| Mankato State | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Game | Winner | Score | Loser | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Game 1 | San Diego | 5–4 | Florida Southern | |
| Game 2 | Central Michigan | 9–0 | Mankato State | |
| Game 3 | Florida Southern | 6–0 | [[{{{school}}}|Mankato State]] | Mankato State eliminated |
| Game 4 | Central Michigan | 5–3 | San Diego | |
| Game 5 | Florida Southern | 11–4 | San Diego | San Diego eliminated |
| Game 6 | Florida Southern | 9–6 | Central Michigan | |
| Game 7 | Florida Southern | 4–0 | Central Michigan | Florida Southern wins National Championship |