For the first time in program history, the Hofstra baseball team will take part in the NCAA College Baseball National Tournament at the double-elimination Chapel Hill Regional with Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), the University of Georgia and the No. 10 University of North Carolina (UNC).

University of North Carolina

The Pride will open the tournament on Friday, June 3, at 2 p.m. against regional host UNC, who enters the national tournament as the Atlantic Coastal Conference champions. The Tar Heels defeated North Carolina State University in the conference finals to clinch the opportunity to host the super-regional round. Luckily for them, UNC has enjoyed quite the home field advantage this season, finishing the year with a 29-6 record at Chapel Hill as opposed to a 5-12 record away from home.

UNC is a team filled with star power, but perhaps the most formidable is freshman center fielder Vance Honeycutt, who is widely regarded as one of the best freshmen in college baseball today. This season, Honeycutt hit 20 home runs and stole 20 bases, becoming the first freshman in UNC history to accomplish the feat. UNC climbed into the national rankings throughout the season and is the favorite to come out of the regional round.

University of Georgia

Despite not winning the Southeastern Conference (SEC) tournament, the University of Georgia is still a force in the college baseball world. The Bulldogs finished the season with a 35-21 record, including an even 15-15 in SEC play. Georgia’s biggest win of the year came on the road against the top-ranked University of Tennessee, handing the Volunteers one of their only three losses at home this season. Georgia qualified for the national tournament with an at-large bid and is sure to give the rest of the teams a run for their money. The Bulldogs will open the tournament against VCU.

Virginia Commonwealth University

VCU is the final team joining the Pride in the Chapel Hill Regionals. Despite not being as strong as Georgia or UNC, VCU is coming into the tournament on a hot streak, having won its last 15 games – the most recent over the University of Richmond, which brought home the Atlantic 10 conference championship. Whether or not VCU can use that momentum to take down Georgia in its opening game remains to be seen.

 After putting together a historic regular season, Hofstra is now up against the toughest competition it has ever seen. With four great teams all congregating in Chapel Hill, it is sure to make for a competitive week of baseball.

Photo Courtesy of Hofstra Athletics