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Baseball Sweeps NC State With 12-4 Win On Sunday
April 21, 2002 | Baseball
April 21, 2002
CHAPEL HILL - The 21st-ranked Carolina baseball team completed its first three-game sweep of ACC rival NC State since 1990 with a 12-4 win Sunday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium. The Tar Heels, who won 10-2 and 12-5 in the first two games of the weekend series, stormed back from a 3-0 first inning deficit for their fifth straight win over the Wolfpack. Carolina is 28-14, 13-5 in the ACC, while NC State falls to 25-17 overall, 4-11 in the league.
Adam Greenberg (4-for-4, 2 RBIs, 2 runs) and Jeremy Cleveland (3-for-5, 3 runs, RBI) paced Carolina's 16-hit attack, while Michael Gross (4-3) pitched 3.2 one-hit innings out of the bullpen for his fourth win. Mike Prochaska (4-1) gave up six runs on eight hits while walking four and striking out two for his first loss of the season.
NC State sent eight batters to the plate in the first and tagged UNC starter Daniel Moore for three runs on five singles in the first frame. Justin Riley, Colt Morton and Adam Hargrave all drove in runs for the Wolfpack for an early 3-0 lead.
A bunt single by Chad Orvella and a walk to Joe Gaetti in the second brought Scott Manshack from the bullpen, but the sophomore right-hander also struggled on the mound. Manshack walked three in 2.1 innings and gave up the fourth Wolfpack run, while Whitley Benson walked one and struck out one before Gross took the mound as UNC's fourth pitcher in the first five innings.
"We were very aggressive," said UNC head coach Mike Fox. "Our speed got us a couple of runs when we were trying to come back. Our relief pitching was critical today after having to go to the bullpen early. To hold them to one run over the last eight (innings) allowed us to climb out of a hole."
Meanwhile, the Tar Heels had chipped into the State lead with an RBI double in the third and Carolina got two runs in the bottom of the fourth on a line drive, opposite field home run by Cleveland and an infield single by Russ Adams that drove home Chris Iannetta.
Down 4-3 going into the bottom of the fifth, the Tar Heels put three runs on the board to pull ahead of the Wolfpack. Iannetta tied the game, 4-4, with a sac fly to center, Prosser put UNC ahead with a dribbler to the shortstop that knocked in Ron Braun and Greenberg made the game 6-4 with an RBI double.
Carolina, which had stranded 12 base runners in the first seven innings, blew the two-run game open in the eighth with six runs. Chris Maples led off the inning with a double, Cleveland singled and Braun walked to load the bases with no outs against Wolfpack reliever and Friday's starter Daniel Caldwell. Iannetta drew a bases-loaded walk, Chase Younts drove in Cleveland, Prosser drove in Braun with a double, Greenberg drove in Iannetta with his second single and fourth hit of the afternoon, Prosser scored when Matt Butler misplayed Greenberg's hit and Russ Adams capped the flurry by driving home Greenberg with an infield single.
Maples collected the final three outs with an inning of relief in the ninth.
"We're now 10-2 in the league at home, and you have to do that to be in the top of this league," Greenberg said. "We came out and did what we needed to do this weekend."
Carolina hosts Virginia Commonwealth on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in a game that was originally scheduled for March 12 but was postponed due to rain. The Tar Heels then play at Charlotte on Wednesday at 6:35 p.m. before returning home next weekend to face the defending national champion Miami Hurricanes for three games at Boshamer Stadium.
UNC NOTES: At 13-5 in the ACC, Carolina ties its most conference wins in the Mike Fox era. (The Tar Heels were 13-11 in ACC games in 1999, 12-12 in 2000 and 9-15 in 2001) ... Carolina has swept three ACC series for the first time since sweeping four in 1990, the last year UNC won the ACC title ... Adam Greenberg finished the series 9-for-14 (.643) with nine RBIs and five runs scored ... Greenberg moved into a fifth-place tie with Devy Bell (1984-87) for career runs at Carolina with 172.
