NCAA Baseball Clemson Regional Team Capsules
The Kentucky baseball team will be playing in the Clemson Regional of the 2025 NCAA Baseball Tournament this weekend. The Cats are joined in the four-team bracket by the host team, Clemson, as well as West Virginia and USC Upstate.
Here’s a breakdown of all four teams in the Clemson Regional this weekend.
Clemson
Head Coach: Erik Bakich
Record: 44-16 (18-12 ACC)
UK All-Time Record vs. Clemson: 3-6
National seed: 11
Clemson is the host team in the regional and, according to seeding, should be the favorite among the four-team field. The Tigers have won six of their last seven games heading into the NCAA Tournament.
Junior outfielder Cam Cannarella, one of the top players in the country, leads Clemson in hitting with a .339 batting average. Graduate student Dominic Listi hits .306, while the power is provided by junior catcher Jacob Jarrell, who has 15 home runs, and graduate student Josh Paino, who has clubbed 10 long balls.
Clemson’s top pitcher is sophomore right-hander Aidan Knaak, who is 9-1 with a 4.06 ERA. Knaak has struck out 106 batters in 84.1 innings this season. Closer Lucas Mahlstedt, a senior right-hander, is 3-0 with 15 saves while posting a 2.18 ERA.
West Virginia
Head Coach: Steve Sabins
Record: 41-14 (19-9 Big 12)
UK All-Time Record vs. WVU: 12-2
West Virginia stumbled at the end of the season, losing six of its last seven games to go from potentially hosting a regional into a second seed in the Clemson Regional. The Mountaineers won the Big 12 regular season title and have an impressive series sweep over Cincinnati in the regular season.
Senior Kyle West leads WVU with a .354 batting average and with 10 home runs. Junior Sam White is hitting .353, while four other Mountaineers are hitting at least .300.
West Virginia’s pitching is also a strength of the team. Right-hander Jack Kartsonas is 6-3 with a 2.90 ERA, while left-handed senior Griffin Kirn is 5-2 with a 3.32 ERA. Senior righty Reese Bassinger is 6-1 with five saves for WVU.
Kentucky
Head Coach: Nick Mingione
Record: 29-24 (13-17 SEC)
The Cats were the 13th Southeastern Conference team to get into the NCAA Tournament field, setting a new record. UK won 13 SEC games and had eight one-run losses to SEC teams.
Cole Hage leads the Cats with a .317 batting average. Hage also leads UK in home runs (12) and stolen bases (14). Freshman Tyler Bell is hitting .306 with 10 homers and a team-high 46 runs batted in.
UK has three starting pitchers who have been effective all season long. Lefty Ben Cleaver has is 6-3 with a 3.39 ERA. He has struck out 87 batters in 77 innings. Right-hander Nic McCay is 5-0 with a 4.37 ERA, while freshman Nate Harris is 4-2 with a 4.72 ERA.
USC Upstate
Head Coach: Kane Sweeney
Record: 36-23 (19-5 Big South)
UK All-Time Record vs. USC Upstate: 10-1
The Spartans swept UNC Asheville in the final series of the regular season to win the Big South regular season title. Then, USC Upstate added the conference tournament title to clinch a big in the NCAA Tournament.
USC Upstate will not be intimidated by the competition, having already won at N.C. State and against Boston College this season.
Junior outfielder Scott Campbell leads the Spartans with a .400 batting average. He has 11 home runs on the season, one of five Spartans who reached double digits in homers. Campbell also has 21 stolen bases. Redshirt freshman Henry Zenor is hitting .367 for the Spartans, while senior Johnny Sweeney, the brother of head coach Kane Sweeney, is hitting .351.
On the mound, sophomore righty Amp Phillips is 7-2 with a 3.58 ERA and a pair of saves. Lefty Chris Torres is 8-4 with a 4.72 ERA.
Play begins on Friday at noon with Kentucky facing West Virgina. The nightcap, featuring homestanding Clemson and USC Upstate, is slated to begin at 6 p.m.
