University of North Carolina Athletics
Sixth-ranked Tar Heels Hope to Start New Streak at Maryland
April 7, 2005 | Baseball
April 7, 2005
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - After seeing a nine-game win streak snapped Wednesday, No. 6-ranked North Carolina will look to start a new run on the road this weekend, as the Tar Heels (24-5, 8-2 ACC) travel to Maryland (14-17, 4-11 ACC) for a three-game Atlantic Coast Conference series at Shipley Field. Carolina has struggled away from Chapel Hill this season, posting a 2-5 record compared to a 22-1 mark at Boshamer Stadium. The Tar Heel Sports Network will carry all three games this weekend on AM-1360 WCHL in Chapel Hill and on TarHeelBlue.com. Jones Angell and Adam Lucas will call the action.
A LOOK AT THE SERIES
North Carolina (24-6, 8-2 ACC) at Maryland (14-17, 4-11 ACC)
Fri., April 8, 7 p.m.
Sat., April 9, 7 p.m.
Sun., April 10, 1 p.m.
All-Time Series: UNC leads, 113-50-2
Last Series: UNC won two of three in Chapel Hill, May 7-9, 2004.
Quick Hit: Carolina has won nine of 10 meetings with Maryland over the last three years.
TAR HEELS AT A GLANCE
2005 Carolina Record:
24-6, 8-2 ACC
Carolina in the National Rankings:
aseball America: 7th
Collegiate Baseball: 7th
NCBWA: 6th
Sports Weekly/ESPN: 8th
CAROLINA-MARYLAND SERIES HISTORY
Carolina owns a 113-50-2 lead in the all-time series with Maryland, which began in 1899. Mike Fox is 15-5 versus the Terps and has swept the three-game series three times in the last five seasons. Carolina took two of three in Chapel Hill a year ago, blanked the Terps 14-0 in the ACC Tournament and the Tar Heels swept the series in College Park in 2003. UNC has won nine of the last 10 meetings with Maryland over the last three seasons.
A LOOK AT THE TAR HEELS
Carolina sports an ACC-best 2.06 earned run average, led sophomore starters Andrew Miller (6-0, 1.25 ERA, 57 K) and Daniel Bard (5-2, 2.49 ERA, 39 K). The bullpen has also been stellar, led by closer Matt Danford, who is 3-1 with five saves and a 0.86 ERA. Middle relievers Jonathan Hovis (3-0, 1.47 ERA) and Robert Woodard (1-0, 2.17 ERA) have also been invaluable so far this season. At the plate, the Tar Heels own a .298 team average with eight regulars batting above .300. Junior outfielder Mike Daniel continues to lead the team with a .372 average, while sophomore outfielder Jay Cox is on a five-game hitting streak and has pushed his average to .360. Designated hitter Matt Ellington has a team-best 28 RBI, while outfielder Seth Williams leads the team with six home runs. Senior catcher Justin Webb is batting .337 with six homers and 22 RBI.
SCOUTING THE TERPS
Coming off a midweek loss to UMBC, Maryland is 14-17 overall and 4-11 in the ACC. The Terps sport a .285 team average, led by center fielder Truan Mehl, who is hitting .365 with 11 doubles and 19 RBI. Left fielder Will Frazier shares the team RBI lead with Mehl with 19 and tops the team with five home runs. On the mound, Maryland owns a 5.05 team ERA. Saturday starter Ben Pfinsgraff, who held Georgia Tech to just one run last week, tops the staff with a 4-1 record and a 2.68 ERA. He has 41 strikeouts and just 11 walks in 50.1 innings. Righty Chris Clem is 1-4 with a 6.13 ERA and is scheduled to start Friday. Maryland has committed 80 errors in 31 games for a .936 fielding percentage.
A LOOK AT THE TAR HEEL STARTERS
Friday: Andrew Miller (So., LHP): Sophomore lefty Andrew Miller is the scheduled starter for Friday's series opener. He struggled in his last start against Virginia, allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits and four walks in five innings. The four earned runs more than doubled his season total and raised his season ERA from 0.60 to 1.25, which still ranks third in the ACC. On the season, Miller is 6-0 and has a team-best 59 strikeouts in 50.1 innings. Carolina is 7-1 this season in Miller's starts. He has one career start against Maryland and surrendered just one run on five hits in 6.1 innings. Miller struck out five but did not figure into the decision. Miller will face righty Chris Clem on Friday.
Saturday: Daniel Bard (So., RHP): Sophomore right-hander Daniel Bard will take the hill on Saturday in search a third straight win for the first time this season. Bard battled through two rain delays in his last start versus Virginia but went seven innings and allowed five runs but struck out five to run his record to 5-2. He sports a 2.49 ERA, which is seventh in the ACC and is holding opponents to just a .194 batting average, which ranks fourth in the conference. In his only career start against Maryland, Bard allowed career-highs of 10 hits and eight runs in just 3.2 innings. Maryland's Ben Pfinsgraff will oppose Bard Saturday.
Sunday: To Be Announced: Carolina's starter for Sunday's game has yet to be determined.
LAST TIME OUT: ELON 10, NORTH CAROLINA 3
Three North Carolina errors contributed to Elon's six-run fifth inning, and the Phoenix pounded out 12 hits en route to a 10-3 win over the sixth-ranked Tar Heels Wednesday at Boshamer Stadium. The loss snapped a school-record 22-0 home start and ended Carolina's current nine-game winning streak. The 10 runs scored by Elon marked the most allowed by the Tar Heels' pitching staff this season. Only five of the runs were earned, as Carolina committed at least three errors for the seventh time on the year. Carolina starter Andy Gale (1-1) lasted 4.1 innings, allowing five runs (three earned) on five hits and three walks. He struck out three. Elon righty Lance Cole (3-1) picked up the win after allowing two runs on six hits over five innings. Four Phoenix starters had two hits on the night with catcher Drew Davis driving in a team-best three runs with two RBI singles and a sac fly. Freshman outfielder Seth Williams drove in two runs for the Tar Heels, and classmate Chad Flack, who was making first start of the season at third base, went 3-for-5 and extended his hitting streak to five games. The three hits equaled his career best. Senior catcher Justin Webb and sophomore right fielder Jay Cox also added two hits.
TAR HEELS AMONG NATION'S BEST IN ERA
The Carolina pitching staff has been nothing short of brilliant this season and leads the ACC with a 2.06 ERA, which is over a run and a half below its staff ERA of 2004 (3.62), which stood 14th nationally. Rice was last year's national leader with a 2.64 staff mark. The NCAA has not yet tallied national statistical leaders, but the Tar Heels should rank among the nation's very best, as their staff mark was tops in a quick survey of the nation's top baseball conferences. Carolina's 2.06 ERA tops Big 12 leader Missouri's 2.18 mark, SEC leader Alabama's 2.69 ERA and Pac-10 leader Oregon State's 2.76 mark. All ERAs are through games of April 3.
ERRORS PROVE COSTLY FOR TAR HEELS
Three Carolina errors contributed to a six-run fifth inning for Elon Wednesday, but fielding miscues have plagued the Tar Heels for much of the season. UNC has made 50 errors in 30 games for a .959 fielding percentage, which ranks eighth in the ACC. The Tar Heels have committed at least three errors seven times this season, but stellar pitching and timely hitting helped Carolina mask those problems and post a 4-2 record in those games prior to Wednesday's loss.
FRESHMEN FIREPOWER
After struggling early in the season, Carolina's highly-regarded freshman class has quickly adjusted to the speed of the college game. The Tar Heels regularly start four rookies - first baseman Chad Flack, shortstop Josh Horton, third baseman Reid Fronk and outfielder Seth Williams. Flack leads the group with a .396 average over the last 18 games and is batting .326 for the season. He has five home runs and 15 RBI. Williams leads the team with seven home runs, all of which have come in the last 18 games and in just 54 at-bats. Fronk is batting .338 on the year, while Horton is hitting .329. Spencer has added three home runs in his last 17 trips to the plate. This crop of rookies has helped Carolina hit .326 and average 7.8 runs per game since scoring just four runs in three games at the Keith LeClair Classic. These five rookies have each been outstanding over this run:
FRESHMEN PRODUCTION OVER THE LAST 18 GAMES (15-3 RECORD) Name Avg. AB H HR RBI 2B 3B Chad Flack .396 48 19 3 9 3 0 Reid Fronk .391 46 18 1 8 2 0 Josh Horton .353 51 18 2 6 4 0 Seth Williams .315 54 17 7 18 2 0 Matt Spencer .294 17 5 3 6 1 0
WILLIAMS ON TORRID HOMER PACE
Freshman outfielder Seth Williams is tops among ACC rookies with seven home runs. More impressive is that he has hit the seven home runs in just 70 at-bats or one every 10 trips to the plate. Williams' seven home runs are already the most by a Tar Heel freshman since Chris Iannetta hit nine in 2002. The school record for home runs by a freshman is 11 by Drex Roberts in 1981. Dan Moylan had 10 as a rookie in 1998. On the season, Williams is batting .300 (21-70) with the seven home runs and 18 RBI, which is third on the team. He ranks third in the league with 0.29 home runs per game and stands fourth with a .643 slugging percentage.
LAST SEASON AGAINST MARYLAND
Senior Greg Mangum led the Tar Heels in their series win over Maryland a year ago with six hits in the series. He was 4-for-5 with three runs scored in Friday's 11-9 win and followed with two more hits in Sunday's 3-1 loss in 11 innings. Sophomore Jay Cox was solid against Maryland a year ago, collecting four hits and scoring three runs in the three-game set at Boshamer Stadium. In the 14-0 ACC Tournament win, senior Chase Younts went 5-for-6 with three runs scored.
FLACK NAMED ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
After batting .471 with three home runs in a 4-0 week for the Tar Heels, North Carolina freshman first baseman Chad Flack was named Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week Monday. Flack homered in three consecutive games as UNC defeated Winthrop and swept a three-game series from Virginia. In addition to his 8-for-17 effort at the plate and three homers, Flack added four runs scored and five RBI. The rookie homered in the first three games of the week and slugged 1.000 over the four games. He delivered a pinch-hit two-run home run in the win over Winthrop after the Eagles cut the Tar Heel lead to just two runs in the fifth inning. The Forest City, N.C., native then went 3-for-6 with a solo home run in the 14-inning win over Virginia on Friday and followed that performance with a two-run shot in the first inning of Saturday's 10-5 win. Flack also had two hits in Sunday's victory and followed with five hits in Wednesday's loss to Elon.
GREAT WEEKEND FOR WOODARD
Sophomore right-hander Robert Woodard has resume his role as the Tar Heels' jack-of-all-trades on the mound. Last weekend, the Charlotte native made two outstanding relief appearances in Carolina's pair of extra-inning victories over Virginia. In Friday's 14-inning affair, he went 5.2 innings and allowed just two hits and two unearned runs while striking out five. Woodard entered with runners on the corners and no outs in the sixth but worked out of that jam and also retired Virginia in order in the eight, ninth and 10th innings. On Sunday, Woodard entered with runners on the corners in a tied game in the seventh, got out of that jam and then retired the side in the order in the eighth and ninth, helping to set up Carolina's 11th inning win. Woodard, who has also made four starts, lowered his ERA to 2.17 on the season. He has 35 strikeouts in 37.1 innings and his holding opponents to a .188 batting average. Woodard ranks among the ACC's top 10 in ERA (sixth), strikeouts per game (seventh) and opponent batting average (second).
WEBB ON FIRE IN ACC ACTION
Senior Justin Webb has been outstanding in ACC action this season owning a .395 batting average, four home runs and 16 RBI in just 10 games. Webb has had monster games of seven RBI versus Virginia Tech and five against Virginia. In conference games, he is tied for first in home runs per game with 0.40 and is fourth with 1.60 RBI per game. He has set a career high twice this season with four hits in ACC play. On the season, Webb is hitting .337 with six home runs and 22 RBI.
MORE ON ERA
Despite allowing four or more earned runs in four of the last five games, Carolina appears headed for one of the top pitching seasons in program history. The Tar Heels, who have an ACC-best 2.06 ERA, have not had a team ERA below 3.00 since a 2.89 mark in 1983. Carolina's lowest team mark since 1970 is a 2.23 ERA in 1972, the first year the Tar Heels played in Boshamer Stadium. This year, Carolina has allowed just 63 earned runs in 275.2 innings and is holding opponents to a .210 batting average. Tar Heel hurlers have fanned 258 batters compared to just 103 walks. Detailed pitching stats are only available since the early 1950s, and the top Tar Heel ERA since that time was a 1.66 staff mark in 1967. Garry Hill went 8-0 and led the team with a school-record 0.70 mark in 89 innings.
STRONG ACC START ONCE AGAIN FOR CAROLINA
The Tar Heels are 8-2 after 10 ACC games for the second straight season. A year ago, Carolina went 6-8 down the stretch to finish 14-10 overall and in a tie for fourth place. This season, the Tar Heels have won their last six in the league with their first back-to-back sweeps since April 2003. Carolina has never had three straight ACC sweeps since the league went to three-game series in 1990 and it has only won eight straight ACC games twice since then: March 15-30, 2002 and March 8-31, 1990. The Tar Heels' longest winning streak in conference play was 22 straight from 1963-65.
ELLINGTON SURPASSES 2004 RBI TOTAL
Redshirt sophomore designated hitter Matt Ellington was expected to be one of Carolina's top run producers and he has delivered with 28 RBI through 30 games. He was UNC's top returning RBI man with 27 in 2004 set a new career high with an RBI single Wednesday. Ellington has also doubled his career home run total with four this season. He entered 2005 with two. Ellington has shown a knack for driving in runs in bunches, as he leads the team with six multi-RBI games. He has games of five, four and three RBI, as well as three two-RBI efforts. Ellington tallied career-high with four hits and add three RBI in the March 14 win over Princeton. Ellington also went 2-for-5 with a homer and four RBI in the March 9 win over College of Charleston. Earlier this season, he had a career game in the Tar Heels' 17-0 win over Seton Hall on February 19. Ellington was 3-for-5 with two home runs and five runs batted in. The five RBI were a career high and the two homers equalled his career total in just one game. He is batting .302 on the season.
SOPHOMORE STARTERS SHUTTING `EM DOWN
Sophomores Daniel Bard and Andrew Miller have lived up to their preseason All-America billing over the first month of the season. The duo is a combined 11-2 and has allowed just 19 earned runs and struck out 96 batters in 93.1 innings. Miller is 6-0 with a 1.25 ERA, while Bard is 5-2 with a 2.49 mark. Both Bard and Miller rank among the ACC leaders in several categories. Bard is seventh in ERA, sixth in innings pitched per appearance (6.19) and fourth in opponent batting average (.188). Miller is third in ERA, third in innings per appearance (6.19), second in strikeouts per nine innings (10.55) and seventh in opponent batting average (.209).
DANFORD CONTINUES TO DOMINATE
Redshirt sophomore Matt Danford has been solid in the closer role, finishing 15 games and posting a 3-1 record with five saves. Danford, who missed all of the 2004 season following surgery on his right shoulder, struck out the side in the ninth versus Appalachian State February 16 in his first appearance since the 2003 Columbia Super Regional. On the season, Danford has allowed just two earned runs in 21 innings for a 0.86 ERA. He has allowed just one run over his last nine innings of work, while striking out 11 over this stretch. The Tar Heels are 13-2 in games in which Danford has pitched.
HOVIS HOLDS OPPONENTS AT BAY
Junior reliever Jonathan Hovis has been outstanding in middle relief and as a set-up man for closer Matt Danford. He sports a 1.47 ERA and is 3-0 with two saves in 14 appearances. Hovis is also holding opponents to a .196 batting average and has 33 strikeouts in just 30.2 innings. He has allowed just one run over his last 9.2 innings (four appearances) for a 0.93 ERA over this stretch. The Tar Heels are 12-2 in games in which Hovis has pitched. Hovis is fourth in the ACC in ERA, fourth in strikeouts per nine innings (9.68) and sixth in opponent batting average (.196).
BEST-EVER START AT THE BOSH
Carolina's sweep of Virginia last weekend gave the Tar Heels a school-record home start at Boshamer Stadium. Following Wednesday's loss to Elon, UNC is now 22-1 at home. This year's team surpassed a 21-0 start by the 1990 squad, which won a school-record 51 games.
BEST STARTS AT BOSHAMER STADIUM YEAR START FINISH 2005 22-0 ??? 1990 21-0 29-3 1987 17-0 22-8 2000 15-0 30-5
RECORD-SETTING START FOR STAFF
Carolina opened the season with 32 consecutive scoreless innings and did not allow an earned run for the first 43.2 innings of the season. UNC tossed three consecutive shutouts for the first time since 1922 and opened with three consecutive shutouts for the first time in program history.
TAR HEELS ON NATIONAL TV
Carolina will have six regular-season games nationally televised by ESPN networks this season, as all three games of both the Miami and Georgia Tech series at Boshamer Stadium will be aired on either ESPN2 or ESPNU. These six games are part of a 44-game college baseball and softball package that will air on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU between April 8 and May 22. Carolina is a part of all six Atlantic Coast Conference games that will air as a part of this package.
ESPN ACC Baseball Telecast Schedule Miami at North Carolina *Fri., April 15, 4 p.m. - ESPNU *Sat., April 16, 7 p.m. - ESPN2 Sun., April 17, 1 p.m. - ESPNU (Will air tape-delayed at 4 p.m.)Georgia Tech at North Carolina *Thurs., May 19, 7 p.m. - ESPN2 Fri., May 20, 7 p.m. - ESPNU *Sat., May 21, 5 p.m. - ESPNU *Denotes changed game time from original schedule
