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The Diamond Heels have punched their ticket to the Men’s College World Series and will play their first game in Omaha Friday at 7 p.m. against Ole Miss. But the Rebels are just one of seven other teams who will be joining UNC “somewhere in middle America.” The eight teams are divided into two different four-team groups, and those foursomes will in essence play an NCAA Regional, double-elimination format. The two winners will meet in a best-of-three championship series.
Here’s a look at the three teams grouped with UNC on its side of the bracket:
Ole Miss
Ole Miss’s Tristan Bissetta (32) celebrates a home run with teammates during an NCAA super regional baseball game against Auburn on Saturday, June 6, 2026 in Auburn, Ala. Ole Miss defeated Auburn, 5-3 to advance to the College World Series. (AP Photo/Stew Milne)
Record: 41-21 (15-15 SEC)
The Path to Omaha: Ole Miss, like USC, was not a seeded team in the NCAA Tournament. Instead, the Rebels were sent to Lincoln, NE as the No. 2 regional seed in No. 13 overall seed Nebraska’s region. The Rebels beat Arizona State in 14 innings in their opening game, one which was delayed due to inclement weather. After that, Ole Miss upset the host Cornhuskers 6-3 before beating Arizona State in extras again to advance to the Super Regional round for the first time since winning the national title in 2022.
In the Supers, Ole Miss didn’t have to travel far, making the journey across state lines to face No. 4 overall seed Auburn. The team’s perfect NCAA Tournament continued at Plainsman Park as the Rebels beat the Tigers 6-4 in Game 1, then scored three runs in the eighth inning to win Game 2 5-3. All five of Ole Miss’ NCAA Tournament wins have come against ranked foes.
Recent history: Ole Miss and UNC have only played four times and haven’t met at all since 1969. The Rebels won all four previous matchups.
West Virginia
West Virginia utility Matthew Graveline (0) celebrates his home run during the fourth inning of an NCAA regional baseball game against Binghamton on Friday, May 29, 2026, in Morgantown,W.Va. West Virginia won 10-1. (AP Photo/Mike Buscher)
Record: 45-15 (21-9 Big 12)
The Path to Omaha: Ironically, West Virginia had a much tougher time in its regional than it did in the Super Regionals. The Mountaineers entered the tournament as the No. 16 overall seed and hosted No. 4 regional seed Binghamton, No. 3 Kentucky and No. 2 Wake Forest in Morgantown. After an easy win against Binghamton in the opener, the Mountaineers dropped to the loser’s bracket after an upset loss to the Wildcats the next day. West Virginia beat Wake Forest Sunday afternoon to temporarily stave off elimination, but fell behind Kentucky again, 9-6, entering the top of the ninth inning in the second game that night. Playing as the “visiting” team, the Mountaineers proceeded to load the bases with nobody out. Two runs scored on another walk and a sacrifice fly, and the tying run came across thanks to a balk by the Kentucky pitcher. In that same at bat, WVU’s Paul Schoenfeld lifted a go-ahead two-run home run to right field.
West Virginia won 11-9, then beat Kentucky again in 10 innings the next night to advance to the Super Regionals for the third consecutive season.
The Supers were no contest, as the Mountaineers blitzed unseeded Cal Poly – which had advanced out of No. 1 overall seed UCLA’s region – by a combined score of 29-3 across two games. This is WVU’s first ever trip to the Men’s College World Series.
Recent history: UNC and West Virginia are no strangers to high-leverage postseason situations. The two teams met in a thrilling Super Regional in Chapel Hill in 2024. The Mountaineers led Game 1 entering the ninth inning, but a game-tying home run from Luke Stevenson and a walk-off blast from Vance Honeycutt helped UNC rally for the win. In Game 2, WVU trailed 2-1 but loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. Carolina managed to escape and punch its ticket to Omaha.
Troy
Image via Troy Athletics
Record: 38-30 (17-13 Sun Belt)
The Path to Omaha: Troy was one of the NCAA Tournament’s last four teams in, and like West Virginia, it advanced out of its regional the hard way. The Trojans were sent to Gainesville as part of No. 8 overall seed Florida’s region, then immediately dropped into the loser’s bracket following an opening night loss to Miami. But the Trojans fought back, defeating Rider the next day and avenging their defeat to Miami the day after to set up a date with the Gators for the regional title. Troy needed to beat Florida twice to advance, and that they did: 16-11 in Game 1 and a dominant 10-2 win in Game 2, eliminating the Gators on their home field.
In a stunning turn of events, Troy ended up hosting a Super Regional after Little Rock, the No. 4 regional seed in No. 9 overall seed Southern Miss’s region, advanced out of the foursome into the Supers. The battle of the Cinderellas went the way of Troy, as the unexpected hosts won 12-2 Friday and 7-2 Saturday to clinch a College World Series berth for the first time ever. The Trojans’ 30 losses this season are the most ever by an Omaha-bound team.
Recent history: Troy transitioned to Division 1 in 1994 after winning a pair of Division 2 national titles. Since that move, the Trojans have not faced UNC on the baseball diamond.
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