Carolina Hosts Duke to Begin ACC Play

Friday, March 9

Chapel Hill, N.C.

6 PM

North Carolina

Duke

Photo by: Jeffrey A. Camarati

March 8, 2018 | Softball

Live Stats ACC Network Extra Game Notes

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Following a decisive 12-2 victory at Charlotte Wednesday, North Carolina returns home to begin ACC competition and face Duke in its inaugural season, Friday and Saturday at Anderson Stadium. Since returning from California, the Tar Heels are 3-3 in the past eight days and 8-13 on the year.

Carolina-Duke Scheduled Update
Due to inclement weather forecasted for Sunday, Carolina's three-game series against Duke will now feature a doubleheader Saturday. The Tar Heels host the Blue Devils for a single game Friday at 6 p.m. as scheduled. Saturday's doubleheader is slated for 1 p.m. with game two starting approximately 30 minutes later. All three games will be available on the ACC Network Extra and UNCLiveStats.com.

Weekend Promotions
Throughout the weekend, UNC Athletics will be collecting any non-perishable donations at Anderson Stadium to support the Million Meals Challenge. To reward fans, students and alumni for participating in the Big 4 Million Meals Challenge, each donation of three of more items will receive a $5 gift card to Harris Teeter while supplies last. Friday's game features a rally-towel giveaway. On Saturday, Carolina Fever and the Kids Club will be in attendance. There will also be a pom-pom giveaway and post-game autographs following the doubleheader.

About Duke
After going 3-1 in the team's inaugural tournament, Duke (12-6) travels across town to Anderson Stadium to face their first ACC opponent in program history. Four Blue Devil are batting over .300 with redshirt-sophomore Haley Wymbs batting .421 on the year.

Seniors Power Tar Heels to Midweek Win
The veteran duo of Katelyn Shifflett and Taylor Wike propelled the Tar Heels to a 12-2 win over Charlotte for the final contest prior to beginning ACC play. Shifflett's first home run of the season and Wike's single-game career high, five RBI helped Carolina to its eighth win of the year. Additionally, both Kiani Ramsey and Leah Murray also had three hits and one RBI. Five Tar Heels each logged a hit, totaling 14 – the second-most hits in a single game this season. Katie Grace Olinger earned her first win with Brittany Pickett picking up the save of the season at Charlotte.

New Faces stepping up at the plate
Sophomores Hailey Jensen and Hailey Cole, and redshirt-freshman Kristina Burkhardt each earned a spot in the starting lineup during the fourth week of competition as the trio batted .493 collectively. The group logged 20 hits and nine of Carolina's 22 RBIs, including a pair of home runs by Jensen and Burkhardt. In the Carolina Classic opener, Cole hit 3-for-3 at the plate and ended the weekend with a four-game hitting streak. Against Harvard on Sunday, Burkhardt went 4-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs while also making five putouts in right field. Jensen, with only 17 at-bats this season, is hitting at a .471 clip with eight hits and three RBIs in the Carolina Classic alone.

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