NCAA Regionals Preview

Postseason baseball is finally here as the 2025 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament begins on Friday.

The 64-team field will whittle down to 16 by the end of Monday as groups of four compete in the NCAA Regionals.

The winners of these double-elimination mini-tournaments will be one step away from Omaha as the College World Series looms large in just two weeks.

Who has the easiest path? Who has the hardest path? Who is an underdog to look out for?

Here are some storylines from this year’s upcoming NCAA Regionals.

Easiest path to the Supers: No. 6 LSU

The Tigers have certainly been rewarded with a non-winding road to advancing following a turnaround season in Baton Rouge.

LSU’s regional bracket features Dallas Baptist, Rhode Island and Little Rock in descending order of seeding.

The Little Rock Trojans are eight games below .500 and won the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament title after being the lowest seed in the bracket.

In their only head-to-head with teams in this bracket, LSU defeated 2-seed Dallas Baptist by a score of 7 to 3 in Arlington, Texas on February 26.

Hardest path to the Supers: No. 5 North Carolina

Each team in this regional bracket packs a punch of their own for the Tar Heels to worry about.

The 4-seed Holy Cross Crusaders are the first Patriot League champion not named Army since 2017, and that opportunity won’t be squandered without a fight.

The 3-seed Nebraska Cornhuskers have rode a red-hot offense to a surge in the second half of their season and a Big Ten title.

The 2-seed Oklahoma Sooners have found their success in ace right-handed pitcher Kyson Witherspoon, sporting a 10-3 record in 15 starts this season.

Underdog to look out for: East Carolina

The 2-seed Pirates have made their seventh straight NCAA Tournament appearance thanks to winning the American Athletic Conference title.

As a college baseball powerhouse, East Carolina has always seemed to find a way to get to the postseason.

While making the playoffs has not been an issue, getting to Omaha has been for the Pirates as they have never made it to the College World Series.

Second baseman Dixon Williams has been the key to East Carolina’s success this season with a team-leading 13 home runs and 22 stolen bases.

TCU, Georgia Tech feel slighted by host snub

College baseball analysts were nearly certain that the Horned Frogs and Yellow Jackets would get to host an NCAA Regional.

Imagine the shock, then, when these two were not announced as regional hosts on Sunday.

After being snubbed from the 64-team field altogether last year, it seemed to be par for the course that TCU would fall short of the committee’s favor again.

Georgia Tech is the first ACC regular season champion to not host an NCAA Regional since 1999, and thanks to that head coach Danny Hall will have some extra bulletin board material in his final campaign with the Yellow Jackets.

4-seed with the worst draw: Bethune-Cookman

The SWAC champion has had a tough time getting past the NCAA Regionals in their history in the postseason, but the Wildcats have not been given any help this time around.

Bethune-Cookman will face off against No. 9 Florida State in their opening game, likely with Second Team All-ACC selection in left-handed pitcher Joey Volini on the mound for the Seminoles.

It doesn’t get easier for the Wildcats in a potential elimination game as 3-seed Mississippi State is a member of the SEC, a conference that does not struggle against the SWAC often.

On the other side, 2-seed Northeastern is riding a 27-game win streak, having not lost since April 6.

Most likely 1-seed to not advance: No. 11 Clemson

The Tigers have had their share of struggles when they have lost against teams they shouldn’t have in the postseason.

Despite being a regional host for the third straight season, Clemson has not made a College World Series appearance since 2010.

With 2-seed West Virginia in their regional bracket, the road won’t be easy as the Mountaineers earned the Big 12 regular season title.

It’s hard to forget about that one pesky SEC team as well, with bubble team Kentucky riding a high-powered running offense.

Bryan Portney is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email bep5295@psu.edu.