University of North Carolina Athletics
Tar Heels To Open 2007 Ranked Fifth By Collegiate Baseball
December 22, 2006 | Baseball
Dec. 22, 2006
TUSCON, Ariz. - One season after earning a runner-up finish in the NCAA College World Series and winning a school-record 54 games, North Carolina will open the 2007 baseball campaign ranked fifth in Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's Fabulous 40 NCAA Division I preseason poll, which was released Friday. Additionally, three Tar Heels - Andrew Carignan, Chad Flack and Josh Horton - were honored with spots on the publication's Louisville Slugger Preseason All-America team.
Carolina finished last season ranked No. 2 by Collegiate Baseball and was rated No. 7 in the 2006 preseason rankings. CWS participant Rice earned the No. 1 spot with No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 South Carolina and No. 4 Arkansas ranked ahead of the Tar Heels. Four Atlantic Coast Conference squads are ranked in the top 10 with No. 6 Miami and No. 10 Virginia joining Carolina and Clemson.
No. 11 Georgia Tech and No. 13 Florida State give the league six of the nation's top 13 teams.
A third-team selection, Carignan led the ACC with 15 saves a year ago and posted a 3.21 ERA in 33.2 innings. He struck out 44 batters and walked just 15. He was a key part to the Tar Heels' run to the championship series of the College World Series and followed that up with an all-star selection in the Cape Cod League last summer.
Second-team choices by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, Flack and Horton also were named to Collegiate Baseball's second team. A native of Forest City, N.C., Flack had one of the finest offensive seasons in Carolina history in 2006. He set the school record with 112 hits and also cracked UNC's top-10 single-season totals with 68 RBI and 68 runs scored. Flack, who hit .384 on the season and belted 13 home runs, ranked among the Atlantic Coast Conference's top 10 in average, runs, home runs, triples, RBI, slugging percentage, total bases and fielding percentage.
Horton hit .395 to win just the second ACC batting title for Carolina since 1979. He started 68 of 69 games and added 59 RBI, 62 runs scored, 17 doubles and seven home runs on the season. His 107 hits ranked as the second-best total in UNC history. The Hillsborough product earned All-ACC honors for the second straight season and also picked up first-team All-America honors from Rivals.com, second-team accolades from Baseball America and earned a spot on the Collegiate Baseball's Louisville Slugger third team
CWS participant Rice earned the No. 1 spot with No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 South Carolina and No. 4 Arkansas ranked ahead of the Tar Heels. Four Atlantic Coast Conference squads are ranked in the top 10 with No. 6 Miami and No. 10 Virginia joining Carolina and Clemson.
No. 11 Georgia Tech and No. 13 Florida State give the league six of the nation's top 13 teams.
The Tar Heels open the 2007 season Feb. 16 against Seton Hall at Boshamer Stadium.
