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For the first time in 11 years, a NCAA baseball regional will take place on the grass at Cliff Hagan Stadium.
Kentucky will play the Ohio Bobcats at noon on Friday. The game will air on on ESPNU.
Indiana and North Carolina State will play later at 7:30 on WatchESPN.com
No. 1 seed Kentucky Wildcats
General Information: 39-20 overall, 19-11 in the SEC
Hitters to Watch: Kentucky's explosive lineup starts with junior Riley Mahan, the squad's home run, and RBI king, with 14 and 56 respectively. His batting average sits at .325. Sophomore Tristan Pompey and Junior Evan White are both hitting above .360. Pompey has nine home runs and 40 RBI. White has eight home runs and 38 RBI.
Pitchers to Watch: Kentucky's ace is the big sophomore righty, Sean Hjelle. The Minnesotan is 9-3 on the year with a 3.87 ERA and 91 K's in 15 starts. Redshirt sophomore Justin Lewis has the lowest ERA of any Wildcat starter at 3.28. Lewis is 6-3 on the year through 15 starts as the Sunday fixture on the mound.
No. 2 seed Indiana Hoosiers
General Information: 33-22-2 Overall, 14-9-1 in the Big Ten
Hitters to Watch: Senior slugger Craig Dedelow leads the Hoosiers with 17 home runs and 50 RBI. His .256 batting average fluctuated for most of the season but leveled off during the closing days of IU's Big Ten campaign. JUCO transfer and sophomore Matt Lloyd leads the team with a .317 average. He has 11 homers and 46 RBI on the year to go along with 15 doubles.
Pitchers to Watch: Pitching is not the strength of the Hoosiers nine. The staff ERA is 4.48, and seven pitchers have gotten a start during the 2017 season. Sophomore Pauly Milto is the only Indiana pitcher to log more than 70 innings on the hill. Milto is 6-3 with a 3.75 ERA in nine starts.
No. 3 seed North Carolina State Wolfpack
General Information: 34-23 overall, 16-14 in the ACC
Hitters to Watch: Freshman catcher Brad Debo is NC State's most consistent hitter with a 342 average. He hit four homer runs during the regular season to go along with 41 RBI. Junior Joe Dunand swatted 16 round trippers and drove in 47 RBI to lead the Wolfpack in both categories.
Pitchers to Watch: The Wolfpack have a solid four-pitcher rotation. Senior Sean Adler (5-6) leads the team in innings pitched with an even 70 and struck out a team-high 64 batters this season. 6'8 senior Johnny Piedmonte leads the team with a 1.87 ERA and a perfect 7-0 record thru 57.2 innings of work.
No. 4 seed Ohio Bobcats
General Information: 31-26 overall, 13-11 in the MAC, MAC Tournament Champions
Hitters to Watch: Senior Spencer Ibarra is the Bobcat's do everything at the plate. He leads the team in batting average (.330), total hits (76), home runs (12), and is second on the team in RBI (38). Sophomore Rudy Rott, a .295 hitter, leads Ohio with 47 RBI and hit ten homers which are good for second on the team.
Pitchers to Watch: Ohio's pitching staff gives up a little over four runs a game with the starters all logging well over 60 innings apiece. Michael Klein leads the team with a 5-2 record in 13 starts. Gerry Salisbury (4-3) leads the Bobcats with 71 K's across 16 starts in which he threw a total of 88.2 innings.