Ryan Blake

Position:
Catcher/1st Base/Outfield
Height:
6-1
Weight:
201
Class:
Senior
Hometown:
Kernersville, NC
High School:
Glenn

As a Junior (2002)
Started 44 games and hit seven home runs with 29 RBIs • Had the first two-home-run game of his career on March 3 against California • Set a career high for hits with a 5-for-5, three RBI performance against Maryland on March 16 • Went 5-for-11 in the three-game sweep of Florida State (March 22-24) • Had a career-high nine-game hitting streak from March 23-April 3 in which he went 15-for-37 (.405) with 11 runs scored • Hit a tape measure home run on May 24 in the ACC Tournament versus Georgia Tech • Went 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs in a victory over South Carolina on June 2 at NCAA Regional Tournament in Columbia.

As a Sophomore (2001)
Led the team with 42 RBIs and tied for the team lead with seven home runs • Also hit by pitch a team-high 14 times • Started 32 games at catcher and 17 games at first • Started the season on a tear, batting 6-for-10, including three doubles, with two RBIs and scored six runs over the first three games • Was 2-for-4 with a solo homer in the 7-6 win over Seton Hall on Feb. 23 • Had a career game in the first game of the UCLA doubleheader on March 2; had a two-out, RBI double in the first inning to give UNC a quick 1-0 lead against the Bruins; followed with a fifth-inning grand slam against UCLA ace Josh Karp to erase a 5-2 deficit and give UNC the 6-5 lead; finished the 8-7 win 2-for-5 with a career-high five RBIs • Had a three-run home run in the first inning of a 12-9 win at Coastal Carolina on March 13 • Had his best ACC series against Wake Forest (March 16-18); drove in eight runs over the three-game series in batting 4-for-11; had a three-run homer and was 2-for-4 in the middle game of the series with the Demon Deacons; followed that up with a solo home run in the second-inning of the series-ending loss on Sunday • Had his 12th and 13th RBIs in just five games with a 2-for-5 outing against Towson in the first game of the March 21 doubleheader; had an RBI double and run-scoring single against the Tigers • Fell into a 14-game slump where he hit just 4-for-39 with two RBIs after that hot stretch, but rebounded with homers in back-to-back games, versus UNC-G on April 10 and against Charlotte on April 11 • Scored twice in the series-opener against Virginia but injured his wrist on the final out of that game against the Cavs and missed the last two games of the series • Returned to the lineup in UNC’s 6-3 win over No. 19 ECU on April 17 and was 2-for-4 • Had a pair of two-hit games to open the Duke series (April 20-22) • Was 4-for-10 with five RBIs in the Georgia Tech series (May 11-13); doubled in all three games against the Yellow Jackets • Was 3-for-6 and walked four times in two ACC Tournament games • Finished the season on a six-game hitting streak, tied for his longest hit streak of the year.

2000 Season • Medical Red-shirt
Started the season strong before taking a medical red-shirt • Batted .323 with two home runs and 13 RBIs over the first nine games • Was named to the All-Tournament team at the season-opening ACC/Disney Blast • Was 5-for-10 with four RBIs in three games at Disney, including 3-for-4 with a homer in the 9-0 win over defending national champion Miami. Summer 2000: Played sparingly as a DH with the Asheboro Copperheads of the CPL while still fully recovering.

As a Freshman (1999)
Started 38 games, including a team-high 28 at first base, as well as nine as the DH and one at catcher • Ranked fifth on the team with a .417 on-base percentage • Was hit by a team-high 12 pitches • Was second on the team with 242 putouts • Had a double and a home run to go with three RBIs in the series finale with Wake Forest on March 21 • Had back-to-back two-hit games against Florida State • Was 4-for-10 (.400) in the FSU series with one run scored and two RBIs • Also had two-hit games at Campbell on April 13, vs. Duke on April 24 and in the series-opening win against Georgia Tech on May 15 • Hit a three-run homer on May 8 vs. Mount Olive • Scored a season-high three runs in that 5-0 win over the Yellow Jackets, including one on a fourth inning solo home run. Summer 1999: Played in 31 games for the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod League • Had 14 hits in 75 at bats for a .187 average • Added two doubles and six RBIs.

Glenn High School
Drafted in the 22nd round by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 1998 • Four-year starter for Glenn H.S. and the Kernersville American Legion team (1995-98) • Two-time Piedmont Triad Conference Player of the Year • Three-time all-conference choice • Honorable mention in USA Today for 1998 NC player of the year • First-team all-state in 1998 after hitting .565 with nine home runs and a 1.211 slugging percentage • Honorable mention all-state in 1997 • State Games participant in 1996 and ’97 • 1997 Eastern Showcase participant and MVP for the Arizona Diamondbacks’ team • Also played three years as the point guard on the Glenn H.S. basketball team • All-conference in basketball in 1998 • Honor roll student.

Personal
Majoring in exercise and sports science • Ryan Jack Blake is the son of Randy and Debbie Blake • Born 1/2/80.