Kentucky Faces Wake Forest in NCAA Baseball Morgantown Regional
Kentucky and Wake Forest face off in the first game of the 2026 NCAA Baseball Morgantown Regional on Friday (noon ET, ESPN2). On paper, it looked to be a matchup between two aces, Chris Levonas from Wake and Jaxon Jelkin from UK. However, Kentucky head coach Nick Mingione was not ready to name a starter on Thursday.
“We haven’t decided on a starter yet,” Mingione said. “We watch video and we have quite a few guys lined up to be able to throw but we haven’t decided on a starter yet. We’ll decide in the morning.”
Wake tied for fifth in ACC and Levonas was named all-conference. He is 10-3 with a 2.90 ERA. The right-hander has struck out 110 batters in 68.1 innings. Demon Deacons head coach Tom Walter said on Thursday that he’s going with his ace against Kentucky.
For the showdown between the aces to happen, UK would have to start Jelkin, who is 8-3 with a 3.77 ERA. Jelkin, who was named second-team All-Southeastern Conference, struck out 98 hitters in 88.1 innings.
Mingione knows that staying in the winners’ portion of the bracket is very important for the long-term success of any team.
“It’s a lot easier if you just win the first two games,” Mingione said. “It’s not a slam dunk, it’s not a layup but boy, does it make it easier if you can win the first two games.”
In preparation for Friday’s game, Mingione has watched a lot of film on the Demon Deacons. He has been impressed with what he has seen.
“A balanced team,” Mingione said. “They have speed at the top. They have power, left-handed hitting, right-handed hitting and they play baseball. They’re a very fundamentally sound team.”
Wake first baseman Kade Lewis, who was named to the All-ACC second team, leads the team with a .362 average and has added 13 home runs. Three more Demon Deacons made the All-ACC third team. Outfielders Luke Costello (.328, 17 home runs) and Javar Williams (.338, 31 stolen bases) earned those honors, as did third baseman Dalton Wentz (.295, 17 home runs).
All-SEC shortstop Tyler Bell paces the Cats with a .352 average. Jayce Tharnish hits .350 with 29 stolen bases and Luke Lawrence is hitting .33 with 13 steals.
Mingione likes how his team has prepared for the tournament and believes they have the proper mindset.
“The team wants to win,” Mingione said. “We had an amazing week of preparation. I would say that it’s been our best week of preparation that we’ve had all year. They’re excited, there’s no question about that.”
Whether Friday’s game comes down to a matchup of aces or not, it should be a competitive game between two solid teams from outstanding leagues.
