Ryan Earey's Seven RBI Power Heels Past Pirates
Feb. 26, 2000
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Chapel Hill, N.C. -- The University of North Carolina baseball team, ranked No. 4 in the nation by both Collegiate Baseball and Baseball Weekly, scored a 15-8 win over Seton Hall Saturday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium. B.J. Finnerty pitched a solid 3.1 innings of relief, giving up just one run while striking out two, to pick up his second win of the season. Seton Hall starter Justin Aquaviva lasted just one inning, giving up five runs, four of them earned, for the loss.
After scoring two runs in the first and three more in the second, Carolina exploded for six in the third to jump ahead of the Pirates 11-2. Clay Hooper had RBI singles in both the second and third innings and was 3-for-5 for the game with three runs scored. Ryan Earey followed up a sacrifice fly in the first inning with a two-run double in the second and a two-out, three-run home run to straightaway centerfield in the six-run third. It was his team-leading fifth homer of the season.
The Pirates pulled to within 11-7 in the fifth inning on a grand slam by Kevin Leighton. Seton Hall second baseman Joe Cuervo had a solo home run to centerfield in the third. Both homers came off of Tar Heel starter Chris Elmore, who surrendered seven earned runs in 4.1 innings.
Carolina added a run in the sixth inning when Adam Greenberg doubled home Matt McCay. Greenberg was 3-for-5 in the game and is 5-for-8 in the series thus far. McCay, who started in right field before moving behind the plate in the fifth, was 2-for-4 at the plate, including a triple to lead off the sixth, to extend his career-high hitting streak to nine games. He also leads the team with a .432 batting average.
The Tar Heels were equally effective in the field, turning five double plays on the afternoon, including one in each of the first four innings. In a very unusual occurrence, each infield
position (1B, 2B, SS & 3B) recorded at least one putout and assist on a double play.
The win is Carolina's 43rd straight against a non-conference opponent at Boshamer Stadium and pushes its season mark to 12-0. Last year, the Tar Heels won a school-record 16 straight games to start the season. Seven of Carolina's 12 wins on the year have come against ranked teams. Seton Hall is now 0-2 in 2000.
The Tar Heels and Pirates finish the three-game series Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at Boshamer Stadium.
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