University of North Carolina Athletics
Friday, June 2
Terre Haute, Ind.
7 p.m.
North Carolina
vs
Iowa
Photo by: Joe Bray
Diamond Heels Set To Face Iowa In NCAA Regional
June 2, 2023 | Baseball
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – North Carolina opens its quest for a 12th trip to the College World Series Friday against Iowa at 7 p.m. in game two of the NCAA Terre Haute (Ind.) Regional at Bob Warn Field. The game will be televised on ACC Network.
No. 1 seed Indiana State will meet No. 4 seed Wright State at 1 p.m. in the first game of the double-elimination event, which resumes with two games both Saturday and Sunday. The winner will advance to face the champion of the Fayetteville (Ark.) Regional in the Super Regional.
The No. 3 seed in the regional, North Carolina, has a 35-22 overall record and is 11-10 outside of Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels are 19-7 against non-ACC teams this season with a 32-7 ledger against unranked opponents.
The second-seeded Hawkeyes have a 10-2 record in neutral site games and a 42-14 overall record. Iowa ranks 11th in Division I with a 4.04 ERA, tops in the Big Ten Conference.
Friday's game is the third time these teams have matched up in their histories. UNC posted a 5-3 win over the Hawkeyes in the 1990 NCAA Northeast Regional in Waterbury, Conn. Thirty years later, Iowa evened the series with a 5-4 victory at the Cambria Classic in Minneapolis.
North Carolina junior Mac Horvath only player in Division I this season with 20 home runs, 20 doubles, and 20 stolen bases. Tomas Frick, who was named to the ACC all-tournament team, is hitting .474 over the last nine games with 11 home runs. He leads the team in doubles (21), hits (72) and batting average (.326). Hunter Stokely (.323) and Casey Cook (.322) are also hitting over .320.
Keaton Anthony has been Iowa's leading hitter this year with a team-best .389 batting average with 61 hits and 22 doubles while driving in 38 RBIs. Brennen Dorighi (.340) and Sam Petersen (.331) are also among the team's top hitters, with Dorighi leading the team with 13 home runs and 61 RBIs, while Petersen has 11 homers and a team-high 20 stolen bases.
Junior right-hander Jake Knapp (5-3, 4.79) will start for North Carolina against Iowa sophomore Marcus Morgan (4-2, 3.88). Morgan ranks fifth nationally in fewest hits allowed per nine innings (5.37) and seventh in the Big Ten with 9.99 strikeouts per innings.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• The Tar Heels are making their 35th appearance in NCAA Tournament play and their sixth straight, longest active streak by any team in the ACC (Miami 4, Virginia 3, Wake Forest 2).
In its 34 appearances, Carolina notches a 114-76 (.600) all-time NCAA record and has made 11 trips to the College World Series (1960, 1966, 1978, 1989, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2018).
• UNC has advanced to the Super Regional in seven of its last 14 NCAA Tournament appearances.
• North Carolina will play on the road in the regional round for the eighth time (1999, 2000, '02, '03, '04, '05, '10, '14, 21) since the field expanded to 64 in 1999. The Tar Heels advanced to the Super Regional from those eight regionals just once, winning the 2003 Starkville Regional.
AGAINST THE FIELD
• UNC built its tournament resume with a tough regular season schedule and posted 12 wins over opponents that reached the 64-team field: Charlotte, Duke, East Carolina, Miami, NC State, Virginia, and UNCW.
• The Tar Heels' strength of schedule was rated No. 10 at the end of the regular season.
HISTORY VERSUS REGIONAL OPPONENTS
• UNC is 4-1 against the teams that comprise the Terre Haute Regional: Indiana State (0-0), Iowa (1-1),
and Wright State (3-0).
• The Tar Heels met Iowa in the 1990 NCAA Northeast Regional in Waterbury, Conn., posting a 5-3 victory in the second round.
• UNC and Iowa last met three years ago at the 2020 Cambria Classic in Minneapolis, with the Hawkeyes scoring a 5-4 win.
• Carolina and Wright State played a three-game series in Chapel Hill in 2012, with the Tar Heels sweeping the series and out-scoring the Raiders 34-3.
No. 1 seed Indiana State will meet No. 4 seed Wright State at 1 p.m. in the first game of the double-elimination event, which resumes with two games both Saturday and Sunday. The winner will advance to face the champion of the Fayetteville (Ark.) Regional in the Super Regional.
The No. 3 seed in the regional, North Carolina, has a 35-22 overall record and is 11-10 outside of Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels are 19-7 against non-ACC teams this season with a 32-7 ledger against unranked opponents.
The second-seeded Hawkeyes have a 10-2 record in neutral site games and a 42-14 overall record. Iowa ranks 11th in Division I with a 4.04 ERA, tops in the Big Ten Conference.
Friday's game is the third time these teams have matched up in their histories. UNC posted a 5-3 win over the Hawkeyes in the 1990 NCAA Northeast Regional in Waterbury, Conn. Thirty years later, Iowa evened the series with a 5-4 victory at the Cambria Classic in Minneapolis.
North Carolina junior Mac Horvath only player in Division I this season with 20 home runs, 20 doubles, and 20 stolen bases. Tomas Frick, who was named to the ACC all-tournament team, is hitting .474 over the last nine games with 11 home runs. He leads the team in doubles (21), hits (72) and batting average (.326). Hunter Stokely (.323) and Casey Cook (.322) are also hitting over .320.
Keaton Anthony has been Iowa's leading hitter this year with a team-best .389 batting average with 61 hits and 22 doubles while driving in 38 RBIs. Brennen Dorighi (.340) and Sam Petersen (.331) are also among the team's top hitters, with Dorighi leading the team with 13 home runs and 61 RBIs, while Petersen has 11 homers and a team-high 20 stolen bases.
Junior right-hander Jake Knapp (5-3, 4.79) will start for North Carolina against Iowa sophomore Marcus Morgan (4-2, 3.88). Morgan ranks fifth nationally in fewest hits allowed per nine innings (5.37) and seventh in the Big Ten with 9.99 strikeouts per innings.
| Pitching Matchups | North Carolina | Iowa |
|---|---|---|
| Friday | 7 p.m. (ACCN) | RHP Jake Knapp (5-3, 4.79) | RHP Marcus Morgan (4-2, 3.88) |
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• The Tar Heels are making their 35th appearance in NCAA Tournament play and their sixth straight, longest active streak by any team in the ACC (Miami 4, Virginia 3, Wake Forest 2).
In its 34 appearances, Carolina notches a 114-76 (.600) all-time NCAA record and has made 11 trips to the College World Series (1960, 1966, 1978, 1989, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2018).
• UNC has advanced to the Super Regional in seven of its last 14 NCAA Tournament appearances.
• North Carolina will play on the road in the regional round for the eighth time (1999, 2000, '02, '03, '04, '05, '10, '14, 21) since the field expanded to 64 in 1999. The Tar Heels advanced to the Super Regional from those eight regionals just once, winning the 2003 Starkville Regional.
AGAINST THE FIELD
• UNC built its tournament resume with a tough regular season schedule and posted 12 wins over opponents that reached the 64-team field: Charlotte, Duke, East Carolina, Miami, NC State, Virginia, and UNCW.
• The Tar Heels' strength of schedule was rated No. 10 at the end of the regular season.
HISTORY VERSUS REGIONAL OPPONENTS
• UNC is 4-1 against the teams that comprise the Terre Haute Regional: Indiana State (0-0), Iowa (1-1),
and Wright State (3-0).
• The Tar Heels met Iowa in the 1990 NCAA Northeast Regional in Waterbury, Conn., posting a 5-3 victory in the second round.
• UNC and Iowa last met three years ago at the 2020 Cambria Classic in Minneapolis, with the Hawkeyes scoring a 5-4 win.
• Carolina and Wright State played a three-game series in Chapel Hill in 2012, with the Tar Heels sweeping the series and out-scoring the Raiders 34-3.
Players Mentioned
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INF/OF
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1B
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