University of North Carolina Athletics
No. 24 Carolina Takes To The Road
March 1, 2012 | Softball
March 1, 2012
2012 Season Preview
CHAPEL HILL, N.C.-- No. 24 North Carolina makes a return trip to the Sunshine State to participate in the 2012 Citrus Classic from Kissimmee, Fla. The Tar Heels will play five games in three days, beginning Friday, March 2, with a 2:30 p.m. contest against Syracuse, followed by a 7 p.m. matchup with Baylor.
AT A GLANCE
• Records: Carolina 11-2, Syracuse 5-5, Baylor 12-2, Auburn 14-0 and Oregon 8-2.
• Rankings: North Carolina is ranked No. 24 in the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll and is receiving the most votes (39) of any team unranked in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches' poll. Baylor is ranked No. 10 in the NFCA poll and No. 11 in the ESPN poll. Auburn is ranked No. 17 in the ESPN poll and No. 19 in the NFCA poll. Oregon is ranked No. 18 in both polls. Syracuse is receiving votes in both polls and Fordham is unranked.
• TV/Radio/Live Stats: You can follow the action live on GameTracker.
SERIES RECORDS
• Syracuse: This will be the first-ever meeting between the Tar Heels and The Oranegmen.
• Fordham: Carolina is 2-1 all-time against Fordham. The Rams edged the Tar Heels, 1-0, in their last outing March 6, 2011, in the Citrus Class.
• Baylor: Carolina is 0-2 all-time against Baylor. The last time the Bears and Tar Heels met was Feb 20, 2005, where Baylor prevailed, 11-1 (6), at the Crowne Plaza Classic in Houston, Texas.
• Auburn: Carolina is 0-2 all-time against Auburn, falling to the Tigers, 6-5, in 2009 at the FIU Tournament in Miami, Fla., in their last outing.
• Oregon: Carolina is 1-1 all-time against Oregon. The Tar Heels defeated the Ducks, 3-0, in 2009 at the Palm Springs Classic. UNC also met the Ducks at the Citrus Classic 2011, falling by a score of 1-0.
NOTING THE TAR HEELS
• Opening the season with a 12-2 ledger, this is UNC's best start since beginning the 2000 campaign 11-2.
• Five Tar Heels are batting .310 or better: Logan Foulks (.447), Amy Nece (.409), Ally Blake (.405), Kelli Wheeler (.333) and Haleigh Dickey (.310).
• Also displaying power at the plate, four Tar Heels have registered double-digit home runs in 2012: Foulks (3), Blake (3), Wheeler (3) and Jenna Kelly (2).
• Ally Blake and Jordan Scarboro were named to the 2012 Carolina Classic All-Tournament team for their efforts in leading UNC to a 2-2 record and a third-place finish last weekend.
• Scarboro tallied her second career home run on a 9-3 loss to the Irish Feb. 26 and compiled a team-high seven RBI during the tournament. After the sophomore from Wake Forest, N.C., posted an RBI-groundout in a win over UNC Wilmington Wednesday, she now leads the Tar Heels with 13 RBI.
• Ashley Bone pitched a total of 6.0 innings in relief last weekend, which is more innings than she logged in her entire freshman season. The sophomore from Rocky Mount, N.C., scattered 10 hits, two earned runs and two walks over six innings of work and recorded two strikeouts for an ERA of 2.33 for the tournament.
