University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Duke (ACC Tournament)
Carolina Eliminates Duke at ACC Tournament, 20-2
May 28, 2004 | Baseball
May 28, 2004
SALEM, Va. - Freshman second baseman Bryan Steed went 3-for-5 with a career-best five runs batted in, and North Carolina scored its most runs in an Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament game as the fifth-seeded Tar Heels (40-18) defeated No. 7-seed Duke, 20-2, Friday at Salem Memorial Baseball Stadium. Carolina, which lost to Clemson Wednesday, will get a rematch with the Tigers at 8:30 p.m. Friday. The Blue Devils (25-31) were eliminated from the tourney.
In addition to Steed, third baseman Justin Webb went 3-for-3 with three runs scored, and seven other Tar Heels had two base hits on the afternoon. Right fielder Marshall Hubbard went 2-for-4 and drove in a team-high four runs. He now has 77 runs batted in for the season, four shy of the single-season school record. Catcher Chris Iannetta was also 2-for-4 with his 14th home run of the season. The Tar Heels, who have scored 34 runs over the last two games, had a season-best 23 hits against the Blue Devils.
Freshman left-hander Andrew Miller (6-2) earned the win for the Tar Heels, who have not walked a batter over the last two games. Miller, who scattered seven hits and struck out seven, went the distance for his first career complete game. Junior righty Garry Bakker threw a complete game for Carolina against Maryland Thursday.
Duke starter Danny Otero (2-4) worked four-plus innings, allowing six runs on nine hits and two walks in the loss. Shortstop Adam Murray led the Blue Devils with two hits.
Tar Heel center fielder Chase Younts picked up where he left off Thursday with a bloop double to center in the first inning, his sixth straight hit. He later scored on a two-out infield single by Hubbard to give the Tar Heels a 1-0 lead. Thanks to run-scoring singles by Steed and shortstop Greg Mangum, the Tar Heels added two more in the second. Mangum has hit safely in each of his last eight games.
Duke got back in the game with two runs in the top of the third. Murray, who led off the frame with a double, scored from third on a wild pitch by Miller to put the Devils on the board. Designated hitter Senterrio Landrum cut the lead to 3-2 with an RBI bunt single. The hit scored center fielder Jonathan Anderson, who was hit by a pitch.
Steed struck again in the fourth to push the Carolina lead to 5-2. After a walk to designated hitter Ross Cook and a single by Webb, Steed doubled to the gap in left center to drive in both runners.
Iannetta led off the fifth with his second homer of the tournament to give the Tar Heels a 6-2 lead. The solo shot to left chased Otero from the game. Later in the fifth, Cook doubled to center off reliever David Torcise to drive in first baseman Sammy Hewitt, who walked.
The Tar Heels tacked on two runs in the sixth thanks to sacrifice flies by Hubbard and Hewitt before sending 15 men to the plate and exploding for nine in the seventh.
After loading the bases, the Tar Heels scored two when Younts reached on a fielder's choice to drive in a run and an error by Murray allowed the second to cross the plate. Hubbard then singled home two more before pinch hitters Wes Moyer and Craig Corrado came through with RBI singles. Steed then doubled home two runs, before Iannetta drove in the final run of the frame with an RBI infield single.
Carolina added two more in the eighth on RBI singles by Jay Cox, who pinch hit in the seventh and stayed in at designated hitter, and Mangum.
Clemson, which defeated NC State 12-1 earlier Friday, has defeated the Tar Heels in three of the teams four meetings this season. \
