Tar Heels Await NCAA Tournament Fate

Now being eliminated in the ACC Tournament Semi-Finals, North Carolina waits for NCAA Tournament seeding.

After advancing through Pool play, the Tar Heels ran into a juggernaut Clemson Tigers team. They have been dominant over the last month and a half. With a record of 21-2 in that timeframe, Clemson looks unstoppable and will no doubt host a regional. Carolina and Clemson faced off four times this season, with the Tigers winning every game. Clemson will face Miami in the ACC Championship game.

Selection Day Stats

Even with 22 losses, North Carolina has put itself in position to be a 2-seed once they are placed. Being #27 in the RPI with the 9th toughest strength of schedule overall, the Heels are a tested team. They have played 27 games against the RPI Top 25. Although winning only 9 of those games, many were competitive and will have the Heels ready to play the best teams.

Heels Current Projection

As of May 27th, D1Baseball.com has the Heels as a 2-seed in the Nashville regional. They would join 1-seed Vanderbilt, 3-seed Kent State and 4-seed Lipscomb.

• Vanderbilt is always a tough outing, being a powerhouse in the College Baseball scene every year. The Commodores are 40-18 on the year, with a 25-6 home record. Playing in front of their fans has clearly been an advantage for the team all season.
• Kent State has had a great season themselves. Sitting at 42-16, they have been great all year. The good news for Heels fans is they have only played four games against the RPI Top 50 and lost all four.
• Lastly, Lipscomb has a 35-24 record. The projected 4-seed has only played seven teams ranked in the RPI Top 50, going 2-5.

As we talked about in a previous article, for North Carolina to be successful, pitching has has to be better. The team cannot afford to give up multiple runs in early innings. No matter what happens, North Carolina will surely have their work cut out for them come tournament time.