UNC Baseball Misses NCAA Tournament For First Time Since 2001

For the first time since 2001 the UNC baseball team will not play in the NCAA Tournament. It marks just the second time in head coach Mike Fox’s 17-year tenure that the Tar Heels will not be playing into June.

“I never thought we were immune to this,” Coach Fox said. “It’s not a given. You can say that, but all of a sudden when you’re not in, that’s the reality. No program is immune to this. There’s a lot of really, really good teams out there.”

The team finished the season with a record of 34-24 overall and 15-18 in the ACC.

UNC struggled to close out the season after being thought of as a potential top seed and regional host just a few short weeks ago. It also didn’t help that the team went 3-8 in its last 11 games, which is a large factor into the selection committee’s decisions.

“I think it’s that [the close to the season], and I think our conference record,” Coach Fox said. “I think anytime you finish below .500 like we did in the conference, I think those two things probably–in the committee’s mind, I’m not speaking for them–were hard to overlook.”

The indefinite suspension of junior left fielder Landon Lassiter—the team’s top hitter with a .300 batting average on the year—announced on Friday could also have played a role in the decision.

Fox has declined to comment on Lassiter’s status since the announcement, other than to say that Lassiter would not rejoin the team for the NCAA Tournament no matter how far they advanced.

UNC ended the year ranked 24^th in the nation’s RPI rankings, which measure teams based on win percentage and strength of schedule. That was the highest of any team in the country that was not selected for the 64 team tournament.

The ACC had seven schools selected to play for a national title, including the Clemson Tigers–who the Tar Heels defeated last Friday by a score of 6-3.

“We talked to our players about this, that it’s not a right that we have being in this conference, or being anywhere, that [we’re] in,” Coach Fox said. “So now that it’s a reality we’ll see how it affects us going forwards. Hopefully, in a positive way which it should. We have the right approach and the right kids and the right coaches.”

For comparison, the Tigers finished the season at 32-27 and ranked 55^th in the RPI rankings–but they closed out the year 8-3 in their last 11 games.

Skye Bolt’s time in a Carolina uniform is likely over, as the junior center fielder is expected to be an early MLB draft pick. (Smith Cameron Productions)

ESPN had Clemson listed as its “Last Team In” to the tournament, and the Tar Heels as its “First Team Out”–meaning the decision for the final spot in the field came down to those two teams.

Now the eyes will turn from a potential postseason run over to June’s MLB Draft, where Tar Heels such as Benton Moss, Skye Bolt, and Korey Dunbar have a great chance to be selected–but that doesn’t make the sting of missing the tournament for the first time in 14 years hurt any less.

“You hope when you don’t have good feelings about things that you’ll do things to put yourselves in a position this time next year to not feel this way,” Coach Fox said.

“That’s what we’ve gotta find out about ourselves, starting with me from the top down, meeting with all of our players. Who wants to help and really be part of the solution?,” Fox added.

UNC Baseball Misses NCAA Tournament For First Time Since 2001

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