Cole Messina reveals South Carolina's mindset for Super Regionals

South Carolina catcher Cole Messina came through in a big way during the Columbia Regional last week that advanced the Gamecocks to the Super Regionals. Now South Carolina has a tough task ahead of itself in Florida.

But Messina said despite what the team is facing in the weeks ahead, he said the message to the team is a very simple one.

“I think at the end of the day, we just gotta have fun,” Messina said during the week ahead of the Gainesville Super Regional. “I think that’s what we did last week and I think we’re gonna do it this week. We can’t look too far ahead at what’s the end goal. I think we all realize it but I think we got to stay in the moment and just kind of soak it all in.”

The Gamecocks had spiraled at the end of the season that saw the team drop out of the top 10 and pushed to the brink of even hosting a regional. South Carolina went 2-9 to end the season and followed that up with a 1-2 week in Hoover, Ala., at the SEC Tournament.

The team managed to snag a spot as a regional host as the No. 15 overall seed in the country, and revived itself last weekend. The Gamecocks outscored its opponents 41-11 on their way to three straight wins, including victories over NC State and Campbell.

It looked like a whole lot of fun for South Carolina. Messina said that vibe is something he thinks he gives off all the time on the field.

“I think it’s kind of my personality,” Messina said. “I think I’m always very outgoing. I really don’t try and beat myself up too much over things. I think the root is just look how far you’ve come. There’s no reason to press yourself because we’ve all had like terrible times before. There’s no reason to go back to him. Just have fun.”

Messina is hitting .313 on the season with a .433 on-base percentage and 1.063 OPS. He has 17 home runs, 18 doubles, 65 RBI and 39 walks on the season.

During the Columbia Regional, Messina was 4-for-12 at the plate with four walks and six runs scored.

South Carolina opens the three-game Gainesville Super Regional against Wyatt Langford and the Gators on Friday. The Gators are 11-3 over the past four weekends but the Gamecocks swept them earlier in the season in Columbia.