University of North Carolina Athletics
Carolina Baseball History
February 26, 2001 | Baseball
Feb. 26, 2001
1867
The Tar Heels played their first recorded game, routing an all-star team from Raleigh, 34-17.
1891
aseball returned to Carolina after 23 years and UNC recorded a 1-2 season against collegiate competition.
1921
Manly Lewellyn recorded 11 straight victories to lead the Tar Heels to the first of three consecutive state titles.
1927
The Tar Heels were 14-8-1 and won the North Carolina state crown for rookie coach Jim Ashmore. Ashmore would win a total of 72 games in his four seasons as head coach.
1932
unn Hearn returned to coach the Tar Heels, remaining as head coach for 15 seasons and compiling a 214-133-2 record along the way.
1933
Carolina won the first of six Southern Conference titles in the Hearn era. Hearn's teams would also win a pair of Ration League titles in 1943 and 1945.
1934
The Tar Heels recorded the best winning percentage in school history as they were victorious in 21 of 23 games (.913).
1947
Walter Rabb took over the program after Hearn suffered a stroke. Hearn remained at Carolina for another 10 years, but Rabb is credited as being the head coach during that time.
1948
Kenny Black hit .337 and Vinnie DiLorenzo won nine games to lead Carolina to its first NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels travelled to Kalamazoo, Mich., for the Eastern Regional where they defeated Illinois and lost to Yale and Lafayette.
1954
The Atlantic Coast Conference, which was formed in May 1953, conducted its first baseball championship season. The Tar Heels placed fifth with a 7-8 league record.
1957
Walter Rabb was officially named head coach, although he is credited for all wins and losses since 1947 when he, in effect, took over the program following Coach Hearn's stroke.
1960
Carolina went 22-7, won its first ACC title and advanced to its first-ever College World Series. The Tar Heels were defeated in the CWS by Minnesota and Oklahoma State.
1964
Walter Rabb was named ACC Coach of the Year after the Tar Heels posted a spotless 14-0 ACC record to win their second league title. All-America pitcher Bill Haywood was 10-1 and leading hitter Ken Willard hit 11 home runs with 40 RBI. No other team in ACC baseball history has ever been undefeated in conference play.
1966
Two-sport star Danny Talbott hit .395 to lead the Tar Heels to their second College World Series appearance. Talbott also quarterbacked the Carolina football team and later went on to play in the Baltimore Orioles organization and with the NFL's Washington Redskins. Charlie Carr lead the team with a .397 average and relief ace George McRae was 4-0 with a 1.71 earned run average.
1967
Garry Hill won all eight of his decisions and allowed just seven earned runs in 89 innings for a 0.70 ERA, which is still the third-best single-season mark in ACC history.
1968
Dave Lemonds went 7-1 with a 1.49 ERA and 96 strikeouts in 72 1/3 innings and was named National Player of the Year by The Sporting News. Lemonds led the Tar Heels to a 12-6 ACC record and a fourth ACC championship.
1970
Eddie Hill, a first-team All-ACC first baseman in 1968 and 1969, was ACC Player of the Year, batting .357 and pitching his way to a 5-1 record and 1.07 ERA.
1972
Catcher Mike Roberts earned first-team All-ACC honors for the third consecutive season and concluded his career with a .292 batting average.
1977
Walter Rabb retired as head coach following the season, ending a 31-year career which produced a 540-358-9 record, four ACC championships and two trips to the College World Series. The "Old Leaguer" was named to the ABCA Hall of Fame in 1978 and to the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 1990.
1978
Rookie coach Mike Roberts guided the Tar Heels to a 38-17 season and third-place finish at the College World Series. The Tar Heels won the South Regional at Auburn, Ala. and split four contests in Omaha, losing to eventual national champion Southern California 3-2. ACC Player of the Year Greg Norris was 14-2 with a 1.75 ERA and 118 strikeouts and finished the regular season with a no-hitter vs. East Tennessee State.
1979
Third baseman Jim Atkinson, an All-ACC selection in 1977 and 1978, hit .359 with 16 home runs and 52 RBI and to earn ACC Player of the Year honors.
1980
Scott Bradley, playing third base at the time, became the third Tar Heel in as many years to be named the ACC Player of the Year, batting .386 with 10 homers and 63 RBI. Bradley hit .351 during his three-year career and was an All-America choice in 1980 and 1981. The Tar Heels won the ACC regular-season title for the first time since 1969.
1982
Pete Kumiega's suicide squeeze bunt scored the winning run in the 12th inning of the ACC Tournament Championship Game, giving the Heels a 3-2 win over Virginia for Mike Roberts' first tournament championship.
1983
Scott Bankhead won all nine of his decisions, and Carolina won 40-plus games for the first time in history. The 42-10 Tar Heels placed six players on the All-ACC team and won the ACC Tournament for the second straight year.
1984
Scott Bankhead went 11-0 and struck out 124, and catcher B.J. Surhoff hit .400 with 27 extra-base hits and 53 RBI in leading the Tar Heels to regular-season and tournament ACC titles. Carolina set a then-school record with 44 wins and Bankhead and Surhoff each earned first-team All-America plaudits. Bankhead concluded his career with a 24-3 record and 257 strikeouts. Surhoff set single-season UNC standards with 98 base hits and 65 runs scored. Bankhead and Surhoff also competed on the United States Olympic baseball team that won the silver medal in the Los Angeles Games. Bankhead was the 16th choice of the Kansas City Royals in the June amateur draft.
1985
.J. Surhoff became the first and only Carolina player to be named first-team All-America in consecutive years following a .399 campaign in which he hit 14 homers and drove in 57 runs. Shortstop Walt Weiss batted .351 and earned first-team ACC honors for the second time. The Milwaukee Brewers selected B.J. Surhoff as the number-one pick in the draft. Surhoff completed the 1994 season with a .268 career average, having played 985 games with the Brewers since the start of the 1987 season. Shortstop Walt Weiss was the 11th pick in the first round by the Oakland Athletics. Weiss was named the American League Rookie of the Year in 1988 and was a key contributor in Oakland's three consecutive A.L. championships and 1989 World Series crown.
1987
Outfielder Devy Bell set an ACC career record with 57 home runs. Bell is currently tied for second on the all-time conference home run chart.
1989
John Thoden won 12 games and catcher Jesse Levis hit .341 to lead the Heels to a 41-18-1 record, ACC regular season title and College World Series berth. Carolina defeated second-ranked Mississippi State twice on the Bulldogs' home field to win the South Regional championship. Thoden, a Baseball America third-team All-America selection, was 12-1 with a 2.45 ERA and earned MVP honors at the South Regional. Michael Hoog's complete game, 2-1 victory over MSU in the regional semifinals typified the entire season - terrific pitching and timely hitting. Mike Roberts was named the ACC and Atlantic Region Coach of the Year. Levis led the team in eight offensive categories, was a third-team All-America and was drafted in the fourth round by the Cleveland Indians. The Tar Heels played host to the inaugural Carolina Invitational and defeated No. 1-ranked Arizona 5-3 in extra innings.
1990
The Tar Heels won a school-record 51 games, captured the ACC regular season and tournament championships and entered the NCAA Tournament as the top seed at the Northeast Regional. Michael Hoog set UNC career records in wins (30), starts (60), innings (390) and strikeouts (289). Steve Estroff hit .389 with 15 home runs and 73 RBI and was a Baseball America second-team All-America, and shortstop Ron Maurer set a UNC record with a 31-game hitting streak. Jim Dougherty went 12-2 with a 1.71 ERA and freshman Paul Shuey earned Freshman All-America honors with an 8-1 record and eight saves during his rookie season. Carolina set an ACC record March 3 by scoring 19 runs in the fifth inning in a 23-0 win over Seton Hall.
1991
Paul Shuey and Donnie Leshnock competed as members of the United States National Team. Shuey participated with Team USA in the Pan American Games in Havana, Cuba.
1992
Paul Shuey was the second overall pick in the draft when the Cleveland Indians selected him in the first round. Donnie Leshnock was a fifth-round choice by the New York Yankees.
1993
Carolina compiled a 43-20 overall ledger, including a school-record 30 wins at home, and advanced to the finals of the NCAA Central I Regional where Manny DaSilva, Chad Holbrook and Cookie Massey were named all-tournament. Sophomore relief pitcher Thad Chrismon tied for first in the nation with an ACC-record 18 saves and was named first-team All-America by Collegiate Baseball. Holbrook finished his career with UNC's highest career totals in hits, stolen bases, triples, games played and at bats. Head coach Mike Roberts earned his 600th career win on May 22 when UNC defeated Miami, 3-1, in the Winn Dixie/Carolina Invitational.
1994
Senior designated hitter Cookie Massey was a second-team All-America selection by the NCBWA, the ABCA and Collegiate Baseball and named first-team All-ACC.
1995
Carolina posted a 39-23 record and earned a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament's Atlantic II Regional in Coral Gables, Fla. Senior Sean Murphy posted an 11-4 record and set the UNC record for strikeouts in a season with 125. Thad Chrismon received All-ACC honors for the third consecutive year, after he was named to the second team. Chrismon finished his career leading both the ACC and UNC with 141 career appearances and 41 saves.
1996
The Tar Heels went 33-25 and first baseman Mike Stoner was named first-team All-ACC after pounding 20 home runs, the fourth-best single-season figure in school history. Head coach Mike Roberts earned his 700th career victory in a win over Georgia Tech on Apr. 21.
1997
rian Roberts was named the national Freshman of the Year and set school records with a .427 batting average, 102 hits, 24 doubles and 47 stolen bases. The Tar Heels went 29-31 on the season.
1998
Carolina went 42-23 and reached the finals of the NCAA Tournament Atlantic I Regional before losing to No. 1-ranked Miami. Brian Roberts was named UNC's first ACC Player of the Year since Scott Bradley in 1980 after batting .353 with 13 home runs, 49 RBI and 63 stolen bases, a total that led the nation. Jarrett Shearin joined Roberts on the first-team All-ACC squad after hitting .346 with 14 homers, 68 RBI and 28 steals. Reliever Derrick DePriest set a school record and led the ACC with 44 pitching appearances, going 7-3 with an ERA of 3.15 in 114.1 innings. The season marked the final campaign in Mike Roberts' 21 years as UNC's head coach.
1999
Under the direction of new head coach Mike Fox, Carolina went 41-18 and made its fifth NCAA Tournament appearance of the 1990s. UNC began the season with the best start in school history, 22-2, which included a Carolina-record 16-game winning streak. Carolina peaked at No. 3 in Baseball America's national rankings, also a Tar Heel record, during the strong start. The Heels were led by one of the nation's finest pitching staffs (team ERA of 3.73 ranked eighth nationally), including regular weekend starters Mike Bynum, Ryan Snare and Kyle Snyder, as well as ace reliever Derrick DePriest, who posted the nation's lowest ERA (1.71). Snyder and Bynum were both first-round draft picks in the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. Jarrett Shearin finished his career ranked No. 1 in runs, doubles, RBI and hits in the UNC record book. Tyrell Godwin and Dan Moylan earned first-team All-ACC honors.
2000
One year after getting off to its best start in school history, Carolina eclipsed that with a UNC-record 21-game winning streak to open the 2000 campaign. The Tar Heels went on to post a 46-17 record, its third consecutive 40-win season and the second most victories in school history. The Tar Heels, who peaked at an all-time-high No. 2 in the Collegiate Baseball and Baseball Weekly polls, earned their third consecutive NCAA Tournament berth and fell just one win shy of advancing out of the Regional at Upper Montclair, N.J. as the No. 2 seed. Centerfielder Adam Greenberg earned Freshman All-America honors and was named the ACC Rookie of the Year after having one of the finest freshman campaigns in UNC history. Greenberg led all Tar Heel regulars in batting average, runs, hits, triples, stolen bases and slugging percentage. Overall, five Tar Heels were named either first- or second-team All-ACC, including Derrick DePriest and Tyrell Godwin, who were also both All-America selections. Following the season, seven Tar Heels were selected in the MLB Draft, including Godwin, who was a first-round supplemental pick of the Texas Rangers.
