Tennessee Baseball is heading to the Chapel Hill Regional to begin its run in the NCAA Tournament. The regional is headlined by host team North Carolina, the No. 5 overall seed in the tournament, followed by 2-seed Tennessee, 3-seed East Carolina, and 4-seed VCU.
The winner of the Chapel Hill Regional will move on to face the winner of the College Station Regional in the Super Regionals, which is headlined by host team Texas A&M and 2-seed Southern Cal.
Even as the host team in the region, the Chapel Hill quartet is no easy walk in the park for the Tar Heels. It’s a competitive group with some strings of familiarity mixed in. While speaking on ESPN’s Road to Omaha TV show on Monday afternoon, host Kyle Peterson said that he believes the Tar Heels have the toughest path to Omaha with their projected path and the teams that could get in the way.
“I’ve got North Carolina,” Peterson said. “Does Tennessee hold Tegan Kuhns? Sure. We’ll find out in the next couple of days. Ultimately, East Carolina gets in again, they’re no strangers to the postseason. VCU is not an easy 4-seed when you look at fours. So, not an easy start. But I go to the other side. [Texas] A&M? Extremely offensive. S.C.? Pitches as well as anyone in the country. Pretty decent chance you’re going to get one of those two teams if you’re North Carolina and it comes all the way through… But I think Carolina’s draw, and ultimately, their road, is a difficult one.”
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VFL and ESPN commentator Chris Burke agreed with Peterson, citing the difficulty of the Chapel Hill Regional’s competitors.
“Let me just say about Carolina – They’re playing VCU, who that’s a familiar opponent,” Burke said. “So there’s not going to be the awe factor. Then you’ve got East Carolina, the three seed, who they split with. It was 1-1-1 in a three-game set earlier this year. And then a Tennessee team that’s really trending. K.P. said it, you can throw Evan Blanco first, and if you get by East Carolina, if you’re Tennessee, you’ve got Tegan Kuhns, who’s a first-rounder all saved up there. So I do think, of the Top Eight, Carolina got the toughest draw.”
As both Peterson and Burke alluded to, the big question for Tennessee is who will be the starting pitcher for the Vols’ first game against East Carolina. Do the Vols give the ball to Friday night starter Tegan Kuhns? Do the Vols save Kuhns for a potential North Carolina matchup and give the nod to Saturday starter Evan Blanco instead? It’s an interesting question that Josh Elander and his staff will be thinking through during the week.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee Baseball coverage throughout the week.
Chapel Hill Regional Teams:
1. North Carolina (45-11-1)
2. Tennessee (38-20)
3. East Carolina (36-22-1)
4. VCU (37-23)
