The East Carolina Pirates baseball team, seeded third, will begin their NCAA Chapel Hill Regional campaign against the second-seeded Tennessee Volunteers on Friday, May 29, at 12:00 p.
m. at Bryson Field inside Boshamer Stadium.
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East Carolina earned an automatic bid by winning its second consecutive American Conference tournament title, defeating UTSA 1-0 on Sunday.
The Pirates enter the regional with a 36-21-1 overall record.
This marks the 36th NCAA Regional appearance for the East Carolina program and their eighth straight postseason qualification.
Projected starting pitchers are left-handers Ryan Towers for East Carolina and Evan Blanco for Tennessee.
Outfielder Jack Herring leads the Pirates with a program-record 65-game on-base streak. He ranks 14th nationally with 53 walks and 26th in on-base percentage at .
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498.
Six East Carolina players earned All-Conference honors for the 2026 season.
Ethan Norby, Joseph Webb, and Braden Burress were named to the First Team, Herring to the Second Team, and Ethan Rose and Grady Lenahan to the All-Freshman team.
Tennessee enters the regional with a 38-20 record, including a 15-15 mark in SEC play.
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The Volunteers are in their first season under head coach Josh Elander and posted a 28-10 home record with a series win over No. 4 Texas in early May.
