CHAPEL HILL, NC − Josh Elander understands Tennessee baseball isn’t the favorite to advance from its NCAA Tournament regional. The first-year coach and the Vols aren’t backing down from the challenge.
“I think that’s the only way you should want it as a competitor,” Elander said May 27. “Let’s go best vs. best and figure out what’s what.”
No. 25 Tennessee (38-20) is the No. 2 seed in the Chapel Hill Regional, hosted by No. 4 North Carolina (45-11-1) at Boshamer Stadium. The Vols will play No. 3 seed East Carolina (36-22-1) on May 29 (noon ET, ESPNU) in their first game, with senior Evan Blanco (7-4, 4.94 ERA) starting on the mound for Tennessee and redshirt junior Ryan Towers (7-3, 3.04 ERA) starting for the Pirates.
The winner will face either North Carolina, the No. 5 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, or No. 4 seed VCU (37-23) on May 30 (5 p.m.) while the loser drops to an elimination game on May 30 (noon).
Not being favored is unfamiliar territory for Tennessee, given its dominance in recent years. This is just the second time in six seasons the Vols aren’t hosting a regional in Knoxville. They’ve been the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament the same number of times in that span.
But being the top seed in a regional doesn’t equate to a surefire super regional appearance. At least six non-No. 1 seeds have advanced to a super regional in each of the past three tournaments. Last year it was seven.
The last time Tennessee was a No. 2 seed was in 2023. That team went to the College World Series.
The Chapel Hill Regional is expected to be one of the most competitive in the tournament. Of the 16 regionals to be played this week, its teams have the fourth-highest average RPI and third-highest average Diamond Sports Ranking. Remove No. 4 seeds, who can be statistical outliers, and the Chapel Hill Regional has the highest average DSR ranking of any regional.
“I think it helps us motivate for this weekend and hopefully onto the next,” sophomore Levi Clark said. “But we try and not look at that too much and really try and focus on ourselves. I think our team’s ready for anything, really.”
The Vols have already played with their backs against the wall this year. After starting 4-8 in the SEC, it wasn’t a guarantee they would even be playing in the NCAA Tournament. They needed to go on a run, and they responded by winning four of their last six SEC series – including three against teams hosting a regional (Mississippi State, Alabama and Texas).
Now they find themselves in a four-team pod from which only one’s season will continue. Odds favor North Carolina to advance.
“But the game is not played on paper,” Elander said. “The game is played between the lines and is won by players, and I’m excited because this time of year we’ve always said, ‘Hey, we’re handing you the keys to the car, we’ll let you guys drive it.’ So I’m excited to see how our guys compete.”
NCAA Chapel Hill Regional schedule
All times ET
Friday
- Game 1: Tennessee vs. East Carolina, noon, ESPNU
- Game 2: North Carolina vs. VCU, 5 p.m., ESPN+
Saturday
- Game 3: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, noon, TBD
- Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2, 5 p.m., TBD
Sunday
- Game 5: Game 4 loser vs. Game 3 winner, noon, TBD
- Game 6: Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 5 p.m., TBD
Monday (if necessary)
- Game 7: Game 6 winner vs. Game 6 loser, TBD
Emmett Siegel covers Tennessee baseball for Knox News. Email: emmett.siegel@knoxnews.com; X: @EmmettSiegel_
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Josh Elander, Tennessee baseball comfortable as No. 2 seed in NCAA regional