Preview: Scouting No. 4 national seed UNC baseball's opponents in the Chapel Hill Regional

Sitting in the lounge of Boshamer Stadium on Monday, the Diamond Heels were given the news they had been hoping for.

By being awarded the No. 4 national seed, UNC was assured home-field advantage for the first two rounds of NCAA tournament play, where they lost only two games all year.

The regional round starts on Friday for North Carolina when the team takes on Long Island University at 6 p.m. The Tar Heels also have the reigning national champions, LSU, looming in their bracket, but after facing a difficult ACC schedule and still securing the regular season title, they are likely ready for the challenge. 

“It's fitting, number one, for this team because not many people have talked a lot about our team throughout the season,” head coach Scott Forbes said. “We've got one of the best teams in the country.”

Here is a breakdown of the three other team that make up the Chapel Hill regional:

No. 4 Seed: LIU

In its one series against an ACC team this season, the Sharks fell two games to one against Miami back in February. LIU enters NCAA play having won seven of its last eight games.

UNC will be facing senior pitcher Garrett Yawn, who's pitching style contrasts sharply from the flame-throwing Chase Burns who the Tar Heels saw in their previous game.

“You go from facing Chase Burns, 98 to 100 [mph], to facing a right-handed pitcher, that's going to be 85, 88 [mph] with four pitches [and] going to try to get you out front and roll over the ball,” Forbes said. “So that's one challenge.”

For the Tar Heels, first-year pitcher Jason DeCaro will get the start against the NEC champion. The native of North Port, N.Y. said he has experience pitching against some players on LIU from his time at St. Anthony’s High School. 

“It should be pretty fun to get out there on the same field as them again,” DeCaro said.

No. 3 Seed: Wofford

The Terriers will play in the NCAA tournament for just the second time in program history after winning its second Southern Conference Tournament title. They will take on LSU in game one of the regional at noon on Friday.

Wofford has one of the best offenses in the country, setting a new program record in runs with 603 and ranking second in the nation in scoring average with 10.2 runs per game. Extra-base hits have been its calling card, leading the country in triples with 33. 

UNC — a top-ten scoring offense as well — will need to have its bats firing in a potential matchup with Wofford later in the regional.

“I think we can just trust what we've done since August,” senior first baseman Parks Harber said. “We've really come together as a group and so [we] just know that our preparations prepare us for this moment.”

No. 2 Seed: LSU

The reigning national champion will begin its title defense in Chapel Hill. 

The Tigers struggled in the SEC this season, finishing 13-17 in conference play and earning the No. 11 seed in the SEC tournament. It is one of the hottest teams in the country, though, winning seven of its last eight games and falling by just one run in the SEC title game to No. 1 national seed Tennessee. 

“​​Their tradition, what they've done for college baseball, you have to respect,” Forbes said.

LSU is led by junior third baseman Tommy White, who batted .337 with 24 home runs this season. White is a familiar face to the Tar Heels, having earned ACC Freshman of the Year honors back in 2022 as a member of N.C. State. 

“He's a great player, and that was a crazy year,” senior shortstop Colby Wilkerson said. “So that'll be cool to get back on the field with him because, you know, when the draft comes up, he'll be a name that’ll pop up.”

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