ATLANTA – The newly-crowned 2026 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament champions UIC baseball (27-27-1, 16-8 MVC) prepare to embark on the 2026 NCAA Regionals, facing-off against the hosting Georgia Tech (48-9, 26-5 ACC) at Mac Nease Baseball Park at Russ Chandler Stadium Friday at 11 a.m. (CT).
The game will be streamed on
ACCN on ESPN+ or can listen to the game for free on the
Flames Network. Live stats will be available at
UICFlames.com. Fan interested in attending the game can look at ticket options by clicking this link
here.
SCOUTING GEORGIA TECH
- The Yellow Jackets earned the nation's No. 2 ranking — tied for the highest in program history, last set back in 2005 — after a record-breaking season in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Georgia Tech's 25 victories in Atlantic Coast Conference play matched the league record previously set by Louisville in 2015.
- Georgia Tech enters the NCAA Regionals having own the best offensive showing in the country. The Yellow Jackets enter the weekend owning the best team average (.358), on-base percentage (.469), slugging percentage (.636), hits (713), and most runs (616) than any Power Conference team heading into postseason play.
- The Yellow Jackets won both the ACC regular season and tournament titles this year after securing a 13-6 victory over North Carolina, a feat that hadn't been accomplished in the conference since North Carolina had done that in 2013.
- Right before the tournament, junior Tate McKee showcased his skillset on the mound against No. 23 Boston College on May 19, securing a 9-0 shutout victory. The hurler pitched seven scoreless innings, one hit and struck out 14 batters to secure College Baseball Foundation's National Pitcher of the Week.
- A pillar behind home plate defensively, junior Vahn Lackey has been vital to the Yellow Jackets success this season. Not only has he led Georgia Tech's pitching staff to a collective 4.36 ERA this season, but Lackey has also seen improvements in 11 different offensive statistical categories – including batting a .402 average.
- This will be the 15th match-up between the programs, with UIC hoping to secure its first win against Georgia Tech since 2018.
MVC TOURNAMENT RECAP
- After UIC secured its 13th regular season title at the end of conference play, the Flames were dominant in the MVC Baseball Championship, collecting the tournament title with a 7-2 victory over Southern Illinois Sunday evening.
- Junior Thomas Curry was voted the tournament's Most Outstanding Player after batting .462 across three games with six hits, two home runs and seven RBI. He led UIC's pitching staff to a 2.52 ERA in the tournament, maintaining a 1.000 fielding percentage behind the dish.
- Senior Will Flanigan paced the Flames offensively over the weekend in Murray, batting .556 with five hits, one home run and two RBI, earning a spot on the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) All-Tournament Team.
- Junior Ashton Kampa also earned All-Tournament Team honors, batting .364 with two home runs and six RBI. His three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth inning of the title game against Southern Illinois helped put the game out of reach.
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