University of North Carolina Athletics
A Look Back At 2008 On The Diamond
June 25, 2008 | Baseball
June 25, 2008
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - North Carolina continued its most successful period on the baseball diamond in 2008 with a third straight trip to the College World Series and a number of record-setting performances. TarHeelBlue.com takes a look back at the news, notes and numbers that made this past season so memorable.
BACK HOME IN OMAHA
UNC posted its third straight trip to the College World Series and its third consecutive top-three finish. The Tar Heels made their seventh trip to Omaha and joined Florida State as the only teams to reach three straight CWS as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference. Carolina is 11-7 in Omaha over the last three years.
50 ONCE AGAIN
With 54 wins, Carolina posted its third-straight 50-win season. The Tar Heels are the only team in the country with 50-plus wins in each of the last three years (54, 57 and 54), and their 165 wins from 2006-08 lead the nation. Carolina has won at least 40 games in each of the last seven seasons.
POLL WATCHING
The Tar Heels were ranked in the top five throughout the entire season in at least one of the major national polls and were ranked no lower than No. 4 after April 7. Carolina earned the first consensus No. 1 ranking in school history following a series win at then-No. 1 Miami May 15-17.
SWEEPING THROUGH THE ACC
Carolina went unbeaten in its Atlantic Coast Conference weekend series for the first time since the league went to its current three-game weekend series format in 1990. Highlighting the season were series wins at Miami and Virginia, a home series victory at Florida State and the first-ever series sweep at Clemson by the Tar Heels. Carolina has won an ACC-best 65 league games over the last three years.
HOME AWAY FROM HOME
UNC played its home games at Cary's USA Baseball National Training Complex and hosted its third straight NCAA Regional and second consecutive NCAA Super Regional. The Tar Heels went 8-2 in the NCAA Tournament and outscored their opponents 74-41, while hitting .331 in the postseason.
THE NATION'S TOP STAFF
Carolina owned the nation's top pitching staff in 2008 with an NCAA-best 2.92 ERA. The Tar Heels set a school record with 681 strikeouts and entered the College World Series with national-best marks in strikeouts per nine innings, fewest hits per nine innings and opponent batting average.
ALL-AMERICA QUARTET
Sophomores Dustin Ackley, Tim Fedroff, Kyle Seager and Alex White each earned All-America honors to give the Tar Heels four All-Americas in the same season for the first time in school history. Fedroff was a consensus All-America pick and earned first-team All-America honors from the ABCA and Rivals.com.
RATED ROOKIES
Pitchers Colin Bates and Matt Harvey each claimed freshman All-America honors after outstanding rookie campaigns. Bates went 6-1 with a 2.78 ERA in 27 appearances out of the bullpen, while Harvey was 7-2 with a 2.79 ERA in 19 games, including 16 starts. Harvey also earned a spot on the ACC All-Tournament Team after a 13-strikeout performance against Wake Forest.
FLACK LEAVES HIS MARK
Chad Flack wrapped up his decorated career as the Tar Heels' career leader in hits (328), at-bats (1,058), games played (267) and total bases (526). He also ranks second in runs (207), second in extra-base hits (108), third in doubles (60), third in home runs (42) and third in RBI (212). Flack set an NCAA record with 73 at-bats in CWS play, and he ranks third with 22 base hits in CWS play.
RECORD-SETTING SENIORS
UNC's senior class of Mike Facchinei, Chad Flack, Kyle Shelton, Tyler Trice, Seth Williams and Rob Wooten leaves Carolina as the winningest class in school history with 206 victories over the last four years. This group led the Tar Heels to three trips to the CWS, four NCAA Tournament appearances and the 2007 Atlantic Coast Conference title.
ACKLEY HITS AND HITS
All-America Dustin Ackley hit .417 for the best batting average by a Tar Heel since 1997 and the third-best mark in school history. Carolina's career leader with a .409 average over the last two years, Ackley owns the top two hit totals in school history at 119 in 2007 and 116 this season, and he is the only player in school history to bat above .400 twice in his career. He also scored 82 runs this season to set a single-season UNC record. Ackley hit .511 (23-45) in the NCAA tourney and hit a remarkable .522 (12-23) in the College World Series.
BREAKTHROUGH FOR FEDROFF
All-America Tim Fedroff batted .404 to give UNC a pair of .400 hitters for the first time in school history. He posted the third-most hits (115) and fifth-best batting average in school history and also notched top-10 single-season totals in at-bats, runs, doubles, triples, extra-base hits, RBI and total bases. Fedroff led Carolina in the NCAA Tournament with a .524 average (22-42) with 12 RBI in 10 games.
CYCLE FOR FEDROFF
Tim Fedroff became the first Tar Heel in recent memory to hit for the cycle April 15 against UNC Greensboro. He went 4-for-4 with two walks, three runs and three RBI. Fedroff tripled in the first, doubled in the second and hit a home run in the fourth. He beat out an infield single in the eighth to close out the historic effort.
SEAGER LEADS DOUBLES PARADE
All-America Kyle Seager, who logged a team-best 27-game hitting streak in 2008, paced the ACC with a UNC school-record 30 doubles and led the Tar Heels to a school-record total of 175 doubles on the season. With five players with at least 21 doubles, Carolina produced five of the top 13 single-season doubles total this season.
OFFENSIVE ONSLAUGHT
As a team, the Tar Heels hit .324 for the second-best batting average in school history. In addition to the record doubles total, UNC tied a 1949 school record with 24 triples. The Tar Heels' 257 extra-base hits were the second most in school history.
WHITE OUT
All-America Alex White enjoyed one of the finest seasons by a UNC starter with a 13-3 record and a 2.83 ERA in 20 games, which included 15 starts. He worked 101 2/3 innings and struck out 113 to 42 walks. White led the ACC and tied for second in school history in wins and tied for fifth in strikeouts. White was at his best in the postseason with a 5-0 record and a 2.76 ERA in 29 1/3 innings. White tied an NCAA record with three wins in a single College World Series.
ACC HONORS
Paced by ACC Pitcher of the Year Alex White, Carolina placed six players on the all-conference squad. White and Tim Fedroff were named to the first team, while Dustin Ackley, Tim Federowicz, Kyle Seager and Rob Wooten claimed second-team honors.
FEELING A DRAFT
Six players - Tim Fedroff (7th, Cleveland), Tim Federowicz (7th, Boston), Rob Wooten (13th, Milwaukee), Tyler Trice (21st, Colorado), Adam Warren (36th, Cleveland) and Seth Williams (40th, New York Mets) - were chosen in the 2008 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, matching the Tar Heels' highest total since 2000. Fedroff and Federowicz were selected with back-to-back picks in the seventh round.
IRON MEN IN THE BULLPEN
Rob Wooten and Brian Moran both surpassed the 40-appearance mark out of the UNC bullpen. Wooten, who was 6-2 with five saves and a 1.87 ERA, pitched in 44 games to tie for second in UNC history, while Moran tied for fourth with 40 appearances. He was 1-2 with two saves and a 2.76 ERA.
