Chapel Hill Bound: Tennessee Draws No. 5 North Carolina as Regional Host
Image: Kate Luffman/Tennessee Athletics
By Aidan Sidoti
KNOXVILLE – After falling to Arkansas in the second round of the SEC Tournament, Tennessee baseball did not do enough to secure a hosting spot in Josh Elander’s first season at the helm. During the NCAA Baseball Selection Show on Memorial Day Monday, the Vols were placed in the Chapel Hill Regional with No. 5 overall seed North Carolina serving as the host.
Tennessee earned the No. 2 seed in the regional, which also features No. 3 seed East Carolina and No. 4 seed VCU. The Rams clinched the A10 Tournament title after battling out of the loser’s bracket and defeating Rhode Island in back-to-back games to secure their NCAA Tournament berth.
The Vols will open the double elimination regional on Friday at 12 p.m. ET on ESPNU against East Carolina, which enters with a 36-22-1 record and a 17-10 mark in the American Conference. The Pirates advanced to the NCAA Tournament after a 1-0 win over UTSA in the American Conference Tournament on Sunday.
If Tennessee defeats East Carolina, the Vols would face the winner of Friday’s 6 p.m. ET matchup between North Carolina and VCU on Saturday night. A loss to the Pirates would send Tennessee into an elimination game on Saturday afternoon against the loser of the Tar Heels and Rams.
