The Tennessee Volunteers open the NCAA Tournament today in Chapel Hill, set to take on East Carolina. Tennessee landed the No. 2 seed in the regional, while ECU grabbed the No. 3 seed. They’ll both be trying to knock off No. 1 seed North Carolina, who will open with No. 4 VCU later on today.
Tennessee comes into this hot, winning three of their last four series to solidify their spot in the tournament. The Volunteers will get back Reese Chapman today after he missed the SEC Tournament with a facial fracture. Starting pitcher Landon Mack is available, but his status remains in question for the weekend.
ECU went 36-22-1 on the year. The American Conference champs are once again in the NCAA Tournament, making their eighth straight appearance and still searching for that elusive College World Series appearance.
The Pirates will start Ryan Towers, who is 7-3 with a 3.04 ERA on the season. Tennessee will go with Evan Blanco, who will be looking to bounce back from a couple of rough outings to close the season.
How to watch Tennessee vs. ECU
Location: Chapel Hill, North Carolina