It's official: Iowa baseball is headed back to the NCAA Tournament.
Iowa was one of the 64 teams announced for the 2023 NCAA Tournament field on Monday, earning a spot in the Terre Haute regional.
1) Indiana State (42-15)
2) Iowa (42-14)
3) North Carolina (35-22)
4) Wright State (39-21)
Iowa will play North Carolina in the first game of the regional at 6 PM CT on Friday, June 2. ACC Network will televise the game. The full bracket (and TV schedule) is available here.
NCAA regionals utilize a double-elimination format, so the winner of Iowa-UNC will play the winner of Indiana State-Wright State and so forth.
This is Iowa's first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2017 and the third appearance under head coach Rick Heller (joining 2015 and 2017). Overall, this will be Iowa's sixth NCAA Tournament appearance. 1972 remains Iowa's only College World Series appearance.
The Terre Haute regional is paired with the Fayetteville regional in the bracket. The winner of those two regionals will meet in a super regional the weekend of June 9-11:
HELLER'S HOMECOMING
One notable storyline for this regional will be Rick Heller facing his old team; Iowa hired Heller from Indiana State in 2013. Heller went 131-91 in four seasons with the Sycamores, a run which included guiding them to the NCAA Tournament in 2012 with a 41-19 record.
Heller has spent the last decade in Iowa City — and 32 of his 36 seasons as a head coach have been in the state of Iowa — but returning to Terre Haute is sure to bring back a few memories for Heller.
EARLY REGIONAL PREVIEW
Terre Haute Regional by RPI:
9) Indiana State
27) North Carolina
32) Iowa
77) Wright State
INDIANA STATE (42-15)
The Sycamores went 42-15 overall this season and 24-3 in Missouri Valley action, including a win in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament to secure a bid to the NCAA Tournament. If Iowa and Indiana State match up this weekend, it would be a rematch from earlier in the season -- Iowa beat the Sycamores 6-2 in 11 innings in the season opener for both clubs. Kyle Huckstorf hit a walk-off grand slam to get the W for Iowa.
Indiana State hit .274 as a team this season, with only one hitter (Adam Pottinger) hitting .300 or better (though three other Sycamores hit .296 or better this season). The Sycamores also posted pretty average power numbers (69 HR, 111 doubles, .442 slugging).
The strength of the Sycamores this season has been their pitching and defense. Indiana State ranks 5th nationally in team ERA (3.80), 1st in fielding percentage (.984), 5th in shutouts (7th), 12th in hits allowed per 9 innings (7.91), 16th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.73), and 19th in double plays turned (49). They don't throw many walks, don't give up many hits, and don't make many mistakes in the field.
NORTH CAROLINA (35-22)
The Tar Heels went 35-22 overall this season and 14-14 in ACC action, including a 2-1 showing in the ACC Tournament, though one of the two wins was over #7 national seed Virginia. They went 12-18 overall against eventual NCAA Tournament teams.
North Carolina hit .285 as a team this season, with 83 home runs, 125 doubles, and a .480 slugging percentage. They ranked t-27th nationally in most doubles and were also t-21st in most walks (321). On the mound, UNC had a team ERA of 4.73, 50th best nationally. They posted a 2:1 K:BB ratio with 502 strikeouts and 250 walks
WRIGHT STATE (39-21)
The Raiders went 39-21 overall this season and won the Horizon League Tournament to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament. They went 3-8 against eventual NCAA Tournament teams, with two of the wins coming over Army.
Wright State hit .278 as a team this season, with 76 home runs, 139 doubles (t-9th most, nationally), and a .482 slugging percentage. The Raiders had a 4.85 team ERA and allowed opponents to hit .265, while throwing 511 strikeouts against 209 walks.
We'll have more preview information on Iowa's regional opponents during the week.
