University of North Carolina Athletics
No. 1 Tar Heels Host NC State In Top-10 Clash
April 20, 2006 | Baseball
April 20, 2006
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Coming off its lone midweek loss of the season, No. 1 North Carolina hosts No. 7 NC State in a meeting of Atlantic Coast Conference division leaders this weekend at Boshamer Stadium. The Tar Heels (31-8, 12-6 ACC) and Wolfpack (31-10, 13-5 ACC) will square off at 7 p.m. Friday, 1 p.m. Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
Carolina is in search of its first series win against NC State since sweeping the Pack in Chapel Hill in 2002. The teams played three tight games in Raleigh a year ago, and three of the last six meetings have been decided by just one run.
Jones Angell and Adam Lucas have the call of all three games for the Tar Heels Sports Network. An audio broadcast will be available on AM-1360 WCHL in Chapel Hill and online at TarHeelBlue.com.
SERIES BREAKDOWN
Game Time UNC Starter/NCSU Starter Fri., 7 p.m. Andrew Miller (8-0, 1.33)/Andrew Brackman (1-2, 6.33) Sat., 1 p.m. Robert Woodard (4-1, 3.57)/Eric Surkamp (2-2, 4.87) Sun., 1:30 p.m. Daniel Bard (4-2, 4.47)/Eryk McConnell (6-3, 3.41)
All-Time Series Record: North Carolina leads, 141-116-1
Last Meeting: NC State 8, North Carolina 7, May 1, 2005, in Raleigh
Series Streak: NC State has won the last three regular season series and owns a 7-3 record over the last 10 games in the series.
Fast Fact: Junior RHP Robert Woodard makes his first start against NC State Saturday after holding the Wolfpack to just one run in 10.2 innings of relief in 2004 and `05.
TAR HEELS AT A GLANCE
• Through 39 games, the Tar Heels sit at 31-8 for the first time since the 1999 squad owned the same record. Carolina's 31 victories rank fourth nationally.
• UNC's No. 1 national ranking in the Collegiate Baseball poll is the highest ranking in program history. The Tar Heels were rated No. 1 in the NCBWA poll last week.
• Entering this weekend, the UNC pitching staff has posted a 1.43 ERA over the last five games and a 3.27 mark over the last 10.
• Despite hitting just one homer in its last five games, Carolina has hit 46 round-trippers and has allowed just 18 in 39 games.
• UNC has already surpassed its 2005 stolen base total with 64 through 39 games. With a pair of outstanding catchers, Carolina has allowed just 20 steals on the year.
• Eight potential starters are batting over .300 for the Tar Heels, including Jay Cox at .414 and Josh Horton at .388. Both Cox and Horton rank among the top 10 hitters in the ACC.
• Carolina's starting rotation of Daniel Bard, Andrew Miller and Robert Woodard is 16-3 (.842) this season and 61-21 (.744) over the last three years.
• Thanks in large part to reliable middle reliever Jonathan Hovis and emerging closer Andrew Carignan, Carolina is 23-1 this season when leading after six innings and 27-0 when leading after seven.
CAROLINA-NC STATE SERIES
North Carolina leads its all-time series with NC State, 141-116-1 and holds a 78-73 lead in games played since ACC play began in 1954. The Tar Heels' 258 meetings with the Wolfpack are their second most against any opponent. Carolina has only played more games - 265 - against Wake Forest.
State has won seven of the teams' last 10 meetings and has taken the last three regular season series, 2-1. Carolina's last series win over the Wolfpack was a sweep at Boshamer Stadium in 2002.
UNC head coach Mike Fox owns an 11-11 record against State since 1999, including a 6-3 mark in Chapel Hill.
SCOUTING THE WOLFPACK
NC State enters the weekend with a .348 team average, which leads the ACC. Five regulars are hitting .375 or better for the Pack, including sophomore second baseman Ramon Corona, who leads the team with a .394 mark and 45 RBI. Sophomore third baseman Matt Mangini leads the squad with 51 RBI and is second with a .386 average. Junior first baseman Aaron Bates leads the team with seven home runs and also has 35 RBI.
On the mound, junior reliever Sam Walls tops the staff with a 1.17 ERA, five wins and six saves. NC State's expected rotation for the weekend is sophomore righty Andrew Brackman (1-2, 6.33), freshman lefty Eric Surkamp (2-2, 4.87) and sophomore right-hander Eryk McConnell (6-3, 3.41).
NOTING THE CAROLINA STARTERS
FRIDAY: Andrew Miller (Jr., LHP): One of the most dominant starters in the nation, Miller has allowed just two earned runs over 28 innings since moving into the Friday slot in Carolina's rotation four weeks ago. Miller owns a 0.64 ERA over this stretch, which includes wins over Georgia Tech, Florida State and Miami. Last time out, he allowed just five hits and no earned runs over eight innings in a win against Virginia Tech. Miller's next win will be his ninth, which would be a career best and the most by a Tar Heel since Ryan Snare won 10 games in 2000.
Miller has recorded 10 or more strikeouts three times this season and has 66 on the year and 258 in his career, which is good for sixth on the Tar Heels' career list.
He has worked at least six innings in eight of his nine starts and has gone at least seven in six of his last eight outings. On the season, Miller has allowed just nine earned runs and sports a 1.33 ERA, which leads the ACC and ranks ninth nationally. He has not allowed an earned run in six of his nine starts and owns four shutout performances of at least six innings. Miller has given up just three extra-base hits and one home run all season. His eight wins are second in the ACC and are tied for fourth in the nation.
In two career starts against NC State, Miller has allowed six earned runs on eight hits over 10 innings. He has not recorded a decision and owns a 5.40 lifetime ERA versus the Wolfpack.
SATURDAY: Robert Woodard (Jr., RHP): A winner of 15 of his last 16 decisions, Woodard was sharp in his last start, allowing just one run and matching a career-best with seven strikeouts against Virginia Tech. After uncharacteristically walking 10 batters over his first six starts, Woodard has regained his pinpoint control and has not issued a walk in his last 15.2 innings.
He is 4-1 this season and has a 3.57 ERA in 58 innings and has 31 strikeouts against just 12 walks. Woodard has lasted six innings or more in seven of his nine starts, including his second career complete game in a win over then-No. 1 Florida State April 1. Woodard has also allowed three earned runs or less in seven of nine outings. His win against Virginia Tech last week pushed his career record to 20-3.
Woodard has been outstanding in his career against NC State and is 2-0 with a 0.84 ERA in two appearances. As a freshman, he allowed just one hit over four innings of relief in Chapel Hill and followed that up with 6.2 innings of shutout, two-hit relief in Raleigh last year. In 10.2 innings, Woodard has allowed just one run on three hits and has struck out 10 State batters.
SUNDAY: Daniel Bard (Jr., RHP): Bard picked up his first win since March 11 with seven strong innings against Virginia Tech in his last start. He allowed just five hits and fanned five to surpass the 200-strikeout mark for his career.
Bard leads the ACC in strikeouts per nine innings and has five or more strikeouts in eight of nine starts, including a career-high 13 in a complete game versus Purdue March 4.
On the year, Bard is 4-2 with a 4.47 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 52. 1 innings. He is holding opponents to a .221 average.
Against NC State, Bard is 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA in two career starts. As a freshman, he allowed four runs on nine hits and four walks in four innings in Chapel Hill. Last year in Raleigh, Bard pitched well but did not figure into the decision after allowing three runs on five hits in 5.1 innings. He struck out six.
HORTON HOT AGAINST PACK
Carolina shortstop Josh Horton owns a .571 career against NC State, which tops the current Tar Heel roster. A year ago in Raleigh, Horton went 8-for-14 with four RBI in the three-game series. He went 4-for-5 in the Tar Heels' Saturday win and tied the game in the eighth with a triple. Horton also tied the Friday game with a two-run double in the ninth after an epic at-bat against Atlanta Braves reliever Joey Devine.
CAROLINA LOOKS FOR IMPROVED "D"
Carolina's five-error outing at UNC Greensboro Tuesday gives the Tar Heels 14 errors in their last five games and four games with at least three errors over this stretch. Six of the Spartans' seven runs were unearned leading to Carolina's first midweek loss of the season. In fact, 14 of the last 16 runs allowed by the Tar Heels have been unearned. Eight of the nine runs scored by Virginia Tech last weekend were the result of sloppy fielding.
On the season, Carolina is fielding .963 with 55 errors through 39 games.
TAR HEELS TOP-RANKED FOR FIRST TIME
With the top spot in this week's Collegiate Baseball poll, Carolina is ranked No. 1 in the country in one of the four major college baseball polls for the second straight week. The Tar Heels were ranked No. 1 in the April 10 National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Poll for the program's first-ever trip to the top of the rankings.
The Tar Heels are also ranked No. 2 by NCBWA this week, third by Baseball America and third in the USA Today coaches poll. UNC had reached its previous high ranking of No. 2 on three occasions this season and also twice in 2000.
MILLER BEST IN BIG GAMES
In four games against nationally-ranked opponents, lefty Andrew Miller has been at his best. Against Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Florida State and Miami, the Tar Heels' ace is 4-0 with a miniscule 0.64 ERA in 28 innings. The only two earned runs he has allowed versus a ranked team came at Miami April 7. Miller is holding the opposition to a .157 average and has 28 strikeouts to just nine walks in these games.
ALL-AMERICAS LIVE UP TO BILLING
Junior starters Daniel Bard, Andrew Miller and Robert Woodard are living up to their preseason hype in 2006. The trio of preseason All-Americas is a combined 16-3 with a 3.05 earned run average and has struck out a combined 156 batters in 171.1 innings, while walking just 54. The trio enter this weekend's series with 61 of the Tar Heels' 114 wins over the last three seasons.
Last weekend, Miller, Woodard and Bard each picked up a win in the same series for the first time since the season-opening Seton Hall series. The trio combined to allow just one earned run in 22 innings against Virginia Tech.
Bard can join Miller (22) and Woodard (20) as 20-game winners with a victory Sunday.
CARIGNAN NAMED TO STOPPER LIST
Sophomore closer Andrew Carignan was one of 30 players named to the midseason watch list for the second-annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, the association announced Wednesday. The award will be given to the top relief pitcher in Division I college baseball.
Carignan leads the Tar Heels and ranks 11th nationally with nine saves. He has allowed just one earned run all season and sports a 0.45 ERA.
TAR HEELS SIT FIRST IN COASTAL
Eighteen games through the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season, Carolina sits first in the Coastal Division with a 12-6 record and owns a one-game lead over both Miami and Virginia. The Tar Heels recently completed one of the toughest stretches of the season with a 5-4 record against Georgia Tech, Florida State and Miami over consecutive weekends. Carolina hosts No. 7 NC State and Boston College and travels to Duke and Virginia over the final five weeks of the ACC slate.
MILLER TOP PITCHER AT MIDSEASON
Junior left-hander Andrew Miller was listed as the nation's top pitcher at the midseason point by Baseball America April 5. The publication cited Miller's dominating performances against Georgia Tech and Florida State as highlights of his outstanding start. Miller is 8-0 with a 1.33 ERA and 66 strikeouts in nine starts.
FRONK FINDS A WAY
Third baseman/leadoff hitter Reid Fronk recently saw an 11-game hitting streak snapped and was named national hitter of the week two weeks ago. But whether or not he is hitting, Fronk has found a way to help the Tar Heels this season. He leads the squad with 25 walks and has been hit by a pitch 12 times this season - eight more than any other Tar Heel. This translates to a .459 on-base percentage and a team-high 41 runs scored. Fronk has reached base in all 38 games he has started this season.
FLACK ATTACK IS BACK
First baseman Chad Flack might be off his home run pace of a year ago, but he been the Tar Heels' top run producer of late with nine RBI over the last five games and 11 over the last 10. He now has 29 RBI and can become Carolina's fifth 30-RBI man with just one more.
Flack has a run of five straight multi-hit games heading into the weekend series with NC State and is batting .524 (11-21) over this stretch. Over the last 10 games, he is batting .442 (19-43) to raise his season average to .369.
FED EX DELIVERS
Known around the Carolina clubhouse as Fed Ex, rookie catcher Tim Federowicz has simply delivered as a run producer this season and shares the team RBI lead with 38 in 38 games. He is also second on the team with seven home runs, is slugging .525 and has been outstanding defensively with just two errors on the year.
Federowicz has hit only .270 over the last 10 games but leads the Tar Heels with 12 RBI over this stretch. He is currently on a six-game hitting streak and has driven at least one run in 10 of the last 12 games.
EIGHT IS MORE THAN ENOUGH
The Tar Heels have scored 318 runs this season for an average of 8.2 runs per game, and Carolina is 19-1 on the year when it scores eight or more times. UNC's 12 runs against Virginia Tech April 16 marked its 17th game this season with nine or more runs and the Tar Heels are 17-0 when nearing double-digit run production.
But with their outstanding pitching staff, Carolina can usually get by with less, evidenced by a 23-3 record when scoring at least six times. Five of the Tar Heels' eight losses have come when scoring five runs or less.
CARIGNAN MOVING UP SAVES LIST
Sophomore Andrew Carignan has nine saves in 17 appearances this season and already sits seventh on the Tar Heels' single season list with junior Matt Danford and Gordon Douglas. One more save and Carignan will become just the fifth Tar Heel with 10 or more saves in a single season. Thad Crismon owns Carolina's single-season record with 18 saves in 1993.
On the year, Carignan has allowed just one earned run over 20 innings for a 0.45 ERA. He has 26 strikeouts and just seven walks. He is holding opponents to a miniscule .121 average. Carignan has also proven to be durable with three two-inning saves in ACC play.
JOHNSON ON CAREER-BEST RUN
Sophomore catcher Benji Johnson has pushed his average to the .300 mark on the season thanks to a .471 mark (8-17) over the last five games and a .351 mark (13-37) over the last 10. He has also homered twice and driven in 11 of his 21 runs over the last 10 games. Johnson, who has hit safely in 10 of his last 12 games, is batting an even .300 with six home runs and 21 RBI this season.
BALANCED ATTACK FOR CAROLINA
With eight potential starters batting .300 or better, Carolina has produced throughout its lineup this season to the tune of a .328 team average, which is 34 points higher than its team mark in 2005. Jay Cox (.414) and Josh Horton (.388) rank among the top hitters in the ACC. Another three regulars are hitting above .324. The Tar Heels also have:
• Five players with 31 or more runs scored
• Six players with at least nine doubles and nine with six or more doubles
• Six players with at least 26 RBI and four with at least 30
• Five players with at least six home runs
SUPER SOPHS
Carolina's sophomore class has notched 61 percent of the team's RBI this season (174 of 285) and has already surpassed its run production as rookies a year ago. The 2005 freshmen class drove in 155 runs compared to the 174 through just 39 games this season. Five sophomores have already more than doubled their RBI total of a year ago.
PLAYER 2005 RBI 2006 RBI Chad Flack 49 29 Seth Williams 34 17 Josh Horton 35 33 Reid Fronk 15 30 Matt Spencer 10 26 Benji Johnson 8 21 Kyle Shelton 4 9 Matt Iannetta 0 9 TOTALS 155 174
CAVASINNI COMING ON
Speedy freshman Mike Cavasinni is playing the best ball of his young college career recently, hitting .600 (6-10) over the last five games and .500 (10-20) over the last 10 games. He has raised his season average to .291 and six of his nine RBI on the year have come in the last 10 games.
He has also proven to be a solid contributor off the bench and had a key pinch hit double Tuesday at UNC Greensboro.
CAREER YEAR FOR COX
Junior outfielder Jay Cox is in the midst of a career year having already tallied career-bests of eight home runs and 38 RBI. Hitting a team-best .414, Cox is also just one double short on his single-season high of 11 set in 2004 and `05. Cox is slugging a whopping .669 and is also reaching base at a career-best .503 clip.
Cox leads all current Tar Heels with 167 career hits and 96 career RBI. He is a career .352 hitter in 152 games.
HOVIS ANCHORS HEELS' PEN
With a team-high 21 appearances through 39 games, senior reliever Jonathan Hovis was a savior early in the season when the Tar Heels' bullpen struggled. He is 6-2 with two saves and has allowed just nine runs on 24 hits in 36.1 innings of work for a career-low 1.73 ERA. Hovis has four appearances of three or more innings, including a pair of four-inning outings, which both produced victories. He allowed just one hit over 3.1 scoreless innings to earn a win in the series clincher at Miami. Hovis is now 16-7 in his career with seven saves.
CAROLINA'S CATCHING SUCCESS
The Tar Heels' catching tandem of Tim Federowicz and Benji Johnson has been simply outstanding defensively this season. Opponents have stolen only 20 bases in 39 games and have attempted to steal only 36 times. Federowicz has thrown out 46.7 percent (7-15) of base runners, while Johnson has gunned down 42.9 percent (9-21). The duo has also committed just five errors in 382 chances on the season.
CAREER STRIKEOUT WATCH
With 66 strikeouts over his first nine starts of the season, junior lefty Andrew Miller has 258 for his career. With just 31 more strikeouts this season, Miller can tie Michael Hoog's school record of 289 set between 1987-90. Mike Bynum, a 1999 first-round draft choice, owns the mark for strikeouts in a three-year career with 276 from 1997-99. Miller can move into fifth place on the Tar Heels' all-time list with just 12 more Ks.
CAREER STRIKEOUT LEADERS 1. Michael Hoog (1987-90) 289 2. Jim Dougherty (1987-90) 281 3. Thad Crismon (1992-95) 279 4. Mike Bynum (1997-99) 276 5. Ryan Snare (1998-2000) 269 6. Andrew Miller (2004-pres.) 258 7. Scott Bankhead (1982-84) 257
SHELTON STEPS UP
Second baseman/designated hitter Kyle Shelton is off to a fast start with a .358 average in 26 games played. The South Mecklenburg High School product has already more than tripled his hit total of a year ago. Shelton has 24 hits this season after recording just seven in 2005. He has hit safely in three straight games, including two straight pinch hits and his first career triple Tuesday. He also made his first career start in left field at UNC Greensboro.
THE RUNNIN' HEELS
UNC head coach Mike Fox said he wanted to run more this season, and so far so good. The Tar Heels have swiped 64 bases in 83 attempts through 39 games, led by Matt Spencer and Chad Flack, who has 14 and 12 steals, respectively. Carolina has already swiped more bags than it did a year ago and needs 36 more for its first 100-steal season since 2002.
SOPHOMORE STREAKS
Four of Carolina's sophomore standouts have posted hitting streaks of 10 or more games this season, including third baseman Reid Fronk, who had an 11-game streak snapped last week. Shortstop Josh Horton owns a pair of 12-game streaks this season. First baseman Chad Flack posted a 12-game streak dating to last season's NCAA Gainesville Regional, where he hit safely in all three games. Classmate Matt Spencer notched a 10-game run as well. Both streaks ended in the Tar Heels' win over Appalachian State March 8.
WOODARD'S A WINNER
After an 8-0 season in 2005, junior righty Robert Woodard had a 13-game winning streak snapped by a tough-luck loss at Georgia Tech March 26. The Charlotte native had not dropped a decision since a May 11, 2004, start against South Carolina at Knights Castle in Ft. Mill, S.C.
Woodard rebounded with a complete game victory over No. 1 Florida State April 1 and then beat Virginia Tech April 15 to move his career record to 20-3, good for a .870 winning percentage, which is second in program history behind Scott Bankhead. Woodard is also a perfect 13-0 at Boshamer Stadium over the last three seasons.
