University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Virginia
Tar Heels' Woodard Shuts Down No. 9 Virginia, 5-0
May 13, 2006 | Baseball
May 13, 2006
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Junior right-hander Robert Woodard allowed just six hits over his first career complete-game shutout to lead No. 1 North Carolina past No. 9 Virginia, 5-0, Saturday at Davenport Field. The Tar Heels (41-10, 19-7 ACC) scored four times in the top of the ninth to break open a one-run game and regain a two-game lead over the Cavaliers (40-11, 17-9 ACC) in the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Woodard needed just 94 pitches over nine innings to notch his third career complete game and second this season. He did now walk a batter and struck out two. After pitching out of a fourth-inning jam, Woodard retired 15 straight Virginia batters before allowing a single in the ninth. The shutout is the seventh of the year for the Tar Heels, equaling a school record set in 1978 and matched in four of the last seven seasons. Virginia was shutout for the first time since May 14, 2005 against Miami.
Woodard is now 6-1 on the season and has allowed just four earned runs over his last four starts - a span of 31 innings. The victory was the 22nd of Woodard's career, which is good for a tie for eighth in Carolina history.
Designated hitter Benji Johnson, who has now hit in a career-best nine straight games, matched his career high with three hits for the second time this week. Third baseman Reid Fronk went 2-for-5 with a key two-run double in the ninth, and shortstop Josh Horton also added two hits to extend his career-best hitting streak to 13 games.
Virginia starter Jacob Thompson (9-2) allowed one run on six hits and four walks over seven innings. Second baseman David Adams had four of the Cavaliers' six hits on the afternoon.
Woodard and Thompson kept both squads off the scoreboard over the first five innings until Carolina took a 1-0 lead in the sixth on an RBI double by Johnson. Horton singled through the right side and scored on Johnson's double to right center for all the offense Woodard would need.
The Tar Heels put the game away in the ninth with four runs. A Matt Spencer walk and a single by Kyle Shelton put runners on the corners with just one out. After Spencer scored when Mike Cavasinni reached on a Virginia error, Fronk delivered a two-run double to right center off reliever Shooter Hunt for a 4-0 UNC advantage. Fronk later scored from second on an RBI single by Horton for the fifth and final run.
After seeing 15 straight batters set down since the fourth inning, Virginia threatened to make a game of it in the ninth when Brandon Guyer single and Tom Hagan was hit by a pitch, but Woodard got Jeremy Farrell to groundout back to the mound to close out the shutout.
The rubber match of this key ACC series is set for 1 p.m. Sunday. Right-hander Daniel Bard will take the mound for the Tar Heels with lefty Mike Ballard on the hill for Virginia. Carolina assured itself of carrying the division lead into the final weekend of the season with Saturday's victory. A win Sunday would open the Tar Heels' lead to three games with just three league games left.
