DURHAM – Duke is back in the NCAA college baseball championship after a one-year hiatus and is headed to Coastal Carolina’s regional.

The Blue Devils are the No. 2 seed in the Conway regional and will play No. 3 seed UNC Wilmington — two of the eight North Carolina teams to make the field — at 1 p.m. Friday at Springs Brooks Stadium in Conway, S.C.

Duke is 35-21 this season, entering the NCAA tournament with an RPI ranking of 25th and having been in the top 10 of some polls at the end of April and beginning of May.

“This team probably flew under the radar a little bit in the fall and the preseason,” said coach Chris Pollard, who has his team in a regional for the fifth time in 11 seasons. “I remember (senior associate athletics director) Brad Berndt and I talking right before the season started, kind of feeling like, ‘Hey, this team is a lot better than a lot of people think we are.’”

Along with Coastal Carolina as the No. 1 seed of the regional, Rider is the No. 4 seed. Rider is the only team the Blue Devils have played this season; those teams split one-run games in Durham a few weeks ago.

Monday’s announcement is the culmination of a resurgent season for Duke. The Blue Devils were left out of last year’s ACC tournament after winning it in 2021 and welcomed in a slew of freshmen and graduate transfers.

It was an overhaul that was both necessary and revitalizing.

“I think last year was kind of motivation to this year, to not miss the tournament again,” shortstop Alex Mooney said. “I think guys kind of had that in the back of their minds throughout the winter and the fall, and in the weight room and on the field and stuff like that.”

The regional this weekend is a double-elimination format. Duke’s plan is to start Alex Gow on the mound in the opener, with him being the Blue Devils’ most-consistent starter. Duke’s stay in Conway is likely to be determined by how well its bullpen performs, as the Blue Devils have a deep stable of arms to follow their starters.