Tennessee baseball will host the Knoxville Regional for the fourth time in the Tony Vitello era, setting up the Vols to return to Omaha and defend its College World Series title.
The NCAA has announced the full weekend schedule for the Knoxville Regional, including the ESPN broadcasters that will join the Vols on Rocky Top this weekend.
ESPN play-by-play announcer Mike Monaco will be on the call throughout the weekend, joined by analyst Kyle Peterson.
The Vols will be the No. 14 seed in the NCAA Tournament this year, securing their host spot as a top-16 seed after its wins over No. 9 Alabama and No. 1 Texas in the SEC Tournament.
Tennessee will compete in the Fayetteville Regional, hosted by the Arkansas Razorbacks. If the Vols and Razorbacks advance from their regionals, Arkansas will host Tennessee for the Super Regionals.
No. 1 seed Arkansas is joined by No. 2 seed Kansas, No. 3 seed Creighton, and No. 4 seed North Dakota State.
Tennessee has seen a lot of success at home, which played a big part in the Vols' historic 20-0 start to the season. Tennessee's 29-6 record, combined with the crowd and environment Vol Nation has been able to create in recent years, could give the Vols a big advantage.
Tennessee's bats will again play a big factor in the Knoxville Regional this year. The team has a .308 batting average and a .562 slugging percentage, with 122 home runs and 457 RBIs.
This is nothing new for a Tony Vitello-coached team, as the Vols' bats have been a big reason for Tennessee's success in recent years.
On the other hand, Tennessee's pitching has been hit or miss this year. Liam Doyle has carried the pitching staff with a 9-3 record and a 3.04 ERA. After a dominant season on the mound, he has totaled 142 strikeouts and has an opponent batting average of .182.
Marcus Phillips, Dylan Loy, AJ Russell, Brandon Arvidson, and Nate Snead have also shown flashes throughout the year, and all have a sub-4.00 ERA after the SEC Tournament.
Knoxville Regional Weekend Schedule
Tennessee will be joined by No. 2 seed Wake Forest, No. 3 seed Cincinnati, and No. 4 seed Miami (OH) for the Knoxville Regional, which will begin on Friday, May 30.
Cincinnati and Wake Forest will kick off the regional, with the first pitch scheduled for 1:00 PM. Tennessee and Miami (OH) will start at 6:00 PM ET.
Game three will begin at noon ET on Saturday, and one of the two losers from Friday night's game will be eliminated, ending their season. The winner's bracket game between Friday night's winners will follow at 6:00 PM ET for a spot in the championship game on Sunday.
The semifinals will take place on Sunday at Noon ET to determine who faces the undefeated team in the regional championship, which will take place at 6:00 PM ET on Sunday night.
If game seven is needed, it will take place on Monday, although the time for the winner-take-all game has not been announced because it may not be necessary.