University of North Carolina Athletics
No. 5 Carolina Returns To Action At Elon, East Carolina
May 7, 2007 | Baseball
May 7, 2007
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - After an eight-day break for final exams, fifth-ranked North Carolina opens its last nine games of the regular season with road contests against Elon and East Carolina this week. The Tar Heels (37-10) face the Phoenix (27-23) at 7 p.m. Tuesday followed by a trip east to face the Pirates (32-15) at 7 p.m. Wednesday.
Last time out, Carolina won two of three at NC State April 27-29 and it has bounced back to win five of its last six games since losing three straight. Elon lost two of three to No. 24 College of Charleston last weekend, while ECU swept three games from Houston in Conference USA action.
The Tar Heels are led by freshman first baseman Dustin Ackley and sophomore catcher Tim Federowicz, who have combined to drive in 101 runs. Ackley is batting .441 with six home runs and 53 RBI, while Federowicz is hitting .362 with three homers and 48 RBI. Carolina's pitching staff owns a 2.94 ERA and is holding the opposition to a .230 batting average. Sophomore right-hander Adam Warren (8-0) defeated both Elon and East Carolina earlier this season and will start Tuesday against the Phoenix. He allowed one run on three hits over 5 1/3 innings March 13 in Chapel Hill.
UNC owns a 23-7 lead in its all-time series with Elon and has won three straight, including a 5-1 victory March 13 in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels will be making their first trip to Elon since 1933 Tuesday.
Earlier this year against the Phoenix, junior Kyle Shelton broke open a tight game with a two-run, pinch-hit double in the seventh, and Warren and four relievers combined to allow just five hits, as UNC defeated Elon, 5-1, March 13 at Boshamer Stadium. Shelton's two RBI were a team-high, while left fielder Reid Fronk and Federowicz each added two hits.
Carolina sports a 41-24 lead in the all-time series with East Carolina, which began in 1958. The Tar Heels have won the last six meetings in the series, including a 10-0 win April 23. Carolina is 10-2 against ECU under Mike Fox and posted an 18-6 win in its last trip to Greenville April 19, 2005.
In the April 24 win over East Carolina, Warren tossed a career-best seven shutout innings, and right fielder Tim Fedroff drove in a career-high four runs to pace North Carolina to a 10-0 victory at Boshamer Stadium. The Tar Heels scored nine times over the second and third innings, and Warren and reliever Tyler Trice took over from there, combining on a three-hit shutout. Warren allowed no runs on just three hits and two walks en route to his eighth consecutive victory. Fedroff led the way with four RBI on a second-inning single and a bases-clearing triple in the third, but eight of nine Tar Heel starters hit safely.
Carolina is back in Atlantic Coast Conference action this weekend with three games at Boshamer Stadium against Georgia Tech.
