April 17, 2008

Carolina-Boston College Notes In PDF Format

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Fourth-ranked North Carolina carries a six-game winning streak into this weekend's three-game series with Boston College at Cary's USA Baseball National Training Complex. The Tar Heels (31-7, 13-4 ACC) and Eagles (19-18, 5-13) will square off at 7 p.m. Friday and 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Carolina will make its 2008 television debut Saturday on Fox Sports Net South with Tom Werme and Dan Bonner on the call. Additionally, Jones Angell and Adam Lucas will have an audio broadcast of all three games for the Tar Heel Sports Network. TarHeelBlue.com, AM-1360 WCHL (Chapel Hill), 850 The Buzz (Raleigh) and AM-1150 WBAG (Burlington) will carry all three games. A webcast of Friday's game will be available live and on-demand through ACC Select.

NATIONAL RANKINGS: North Carolina is ranked No. 4 nationally in all four major polls. Boston College is unranked.

TAR HEEL TRENDS: Carolina is tied for second nationally with 31 victories ... All three teams with 31-plus wins hail from the ACC ... The Tar Heels have won 21 of their last 25 games and 13 of 16 in ACC play ... Carolina is the only team in the ACC to rank among the league's top three in batting and ERA ... Carolina's 2.21 ERA also leads the nation and it tops the country with 401 strikeouts ... The Tar Heels have allowed three or more earned runs just five times in the last 35 ... Seven UNC regulars are hitting .300 or better and six Tar Heels own 20-plus RBI ... UNC has already stolen as many bases this season as it did in 73 games a year ago - 47 ... 2B Kyle Seager shares the national lead with 20 doubles and tops the ACC with 52 RBI ... 13 of the 16 pitchers that UNC has used this season own an ERA of 2.51 or below ... Junior RHP Adam Warren is unbeaten in 18 collegiate decisions and will go for win No. 19 Saturday ... Senior 3B Chad Flack has established school records for career hits and at-bats over the last two weeks ... Sophomore OF Tim Fedroff hit for the cycle Tuesday at UNC Greensboro.

SERIES HISTORY: This weekend marks the third ACC series between Carolina and Boston College. The Tar Heels have won all six meetings, sweeping a three-game set in Chapel Hill in 2006 and in Chestnut Hill in 2007. UNC has outscored BC 47-13 in their six previous meetings.

RECENT HISTORY VS. BOSTON COLLEGE: Seven Tar Heel regulars are batting .333 or better in their careers against Boston College ... Dustin Ackley went 6-for-12 in three games at BC a year ago ... Tim Federowicz sports a .462 career average (12-26) with 10 RBI in six games ... Chad Flack is batting .333 (8-24) with five RBI in six games ... Garrett Gore has three hits and two RBI in five games ... Kyle Seager hit .333 (4-12) a year ago ... Kyle Shelton owns a .444 average (4-9) with five RBI in five games ... Seth Williams is batting .409 (9-22) with five RBI in six games ... Rob Wooten pitched in all three games at BC a year ago and was 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA.

SCOUTING THE EAGLES: Boston College is 19-18 overall and 5-13 in league play. The Eagles are paced by freshman infielder Matt Hamlet (.333-2-17) and sophomore catcher Tony Sanchez (.322-7-31) and own a .280 team batting average. On the mound, BC owns a 5.90 staff ERA. RHPs Terry Doyle (3-4, 7.02), Dan Houston (2-1, 4.37) and James MacDonald (3-5, 6.63) are scheduled to start for the Eagles.

HEELS SPORT NATION'S TOP STAFF: Despite losing a pair of first-round picks, the program's all-time winningest pitcher and an All-America closer off the last two teams, Carolina's pitching staff has not missed a beat this season and leads the nation with a 2.21 earned run average through 38 games. This ERA is nearly one-half of a run better than the 2.66 mark at this point in the season last year. The 2006 staff logged a 3.52 ERA through 38 games.

TAR HEELS CAN TOP 2006 & 2007 SQUADS: With wins Friday and Saturday, the Tar Heels can best the College World Series teams of 2006 and 2007 with a 33-7 record through 40 games. Carolina owned a 32-8 record through 40 games in each of the last two seasons. The Tar Heels' 31 victories entering the BC series are tied for second nationally.

UNC THIRD IN THE RPI: The Tar Heels appear to be heading down the right path for hosting a third straight regional, as they are ranked No. 3 in Thursday's Boyd's World RPI. The NCAA has not released its first official RPI, but the RPI is used as a key factor in determining seeding and host sites for the postseason.

CYCLE FOR FEDROFF: Right fielder Tim Fedroff became the first Tar Heel in recent memory to hit for the cycle Tuesday at UNCG. Fedroff, who was 4-for-4 with two walks, three runs and three RBI, tripled in the first, doubled in the second and belted a two-run homer in the five-run fourth inning. After a sixth-inning walk, the Flagtown, N.J., product beat out an infield single in the eighth to complete the cycle. Fedroff also hit for the cycle once in high school.

WHITE'S SCORELESS STREAK: The ACC's leader in ERA, right-hander Alex White carries a string of 16 2/3 scoreless innings into his Friday start against Boston College. He has not allowed a run over his last two starts plus his final four innings against NC State. White is 6-2 with a 1.67 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 43 innings on the season and owns a 0.98 ERA over his last three outings.

BULLPEN SPELLS RELIEF: What was a question mark entering the season has quickly become a strength, as Carolina's bullpen sports a 1.52 ERA, a 10-2 record and seven saves through 38 games. Of the 15 hurlers to work in relief, only two part-time relievers own ERAs over 2.38 out of the bullpen. All six relievers with 10 or more appearances sport ERAs of 2.08 or less. Additionally, the UNC bullpen has walked just 70 batters to 213 strikeouts in 167 1/3 innings. The pen has been extremely effective over the last week with just five runs allowed over 26 2/3 innings and a 1.01 ERA.

SEAGER CLEANING UP: With classmates Tim Fedroff (.478 OBP) and Dustin Ackley (.474 OBP) usually on base in front of him, sophomore second baseman Kyle Seager has made the most of his RBI opportunities. After driving in 30 runs all last season, Seager leads the ACC and stands seventh nationally with 52 RBI through just 38 games. Seager has plated 12 runs over the last five games.

FLACK HUNTING HISTORY: Senior third baseman Chad Flack has set school records for career hits and at-bats over the last two weeks and has a chance to set several a couple of more records before the end of the season. The Forest City, N.C., native is batting .412 over the last 21 games and owns season totals of a .318 average, five home runs and 34 RBI.

Chad Flack On UNC's Career Lists
Category 	Rank	Total	Needs for Record
Hits	        1st	301	Set 4/6 vs. GT
Runs	        4th	188	32
Doubles	        3rd	55	19
HR	        3rd	40	18
RBI	        3rd	197	18
XB Hits	        3rd	101	23
At-Bats	        1st	938 	Set 4/16 vs. Char.
Total Bases	3rd	488	28

STRIKEOUTS SPELL SUCCESS: In addition to leading the nation in ERA, the Tar Heels entered the week as the NCAA leader in strikeouts per nine innings at 10.6. Carolina has tallied 23 double-digit strikeout games this season, including 10 in the last 12 outings. With 401 Ks through 38 games, the Tar Heels are on pace to smash their school record of 543 strikeouts in 69 games in 2006.

WOOTEN NAMED TO STOPPER LIST: Senior right-hander Rob Wooten has been brilliant out of the UNC bullpen and was honored for his efforts with a spot on the midseason watch list for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award. Wooten is 1-1 with three saves and a 0.65 ERA in 27 2/3 innings. He leads UNC with 20 appearances and has 35 strikeouts to 11 walks.

PITCHING PROWESS: Since a loss to No. 20 Coastal Carolina March 11, Carolina has been dominant on the mound to the tune of a 1.81 staff ERA over a 25-game stretch. In 229 innings over this run, the Tar Heels have struck out 269 batters and issued only 95 walks. UNC has allowed more than three earned runs just five times since the season-opening series at Florida Atlantic, which is a span of 35 games.

FEDROFF TAKING OFF: After batting just .143 in February, sophomore right fielder Tim Fedroff has been on a roll since the calendar turned to March. Over his last 31 games, the Flagtown, N.J., native has posted two or more hits 20 times and owns a .462 average (60-130) over this stretch. Fedroff's .405 average for the season is among the ACC's leaders.

THE RUNNIN' HEELS: With home runs at a premium at the USA Baseball Complex, the Tar Heels have placed more of an emphasis on the running game in 2008. So far so good, as they have already matched their stolen base total from 2007 (47 in 73 games) in just 38 games this season. Dustin Ackley leads the way with 14 steals in 16 tries. Conversely, Carolina has shut down its opponents' running game, allowing just 13 steals in 30 attempts.

DEFENSE DICTATES SUCCESS: In most of their seven losses this season, sloppy defensive play has doomed the Tar Heels. Carolina committed at least three errors in four of the seven losses and has allowed a combined 27 unearned runs in these seven games. On the season, UNC has allowed 41 unearned runs. When committing one error or less, Carolina is 28-3. The Tar Heels have committed more than one error twice once in the last 22 games.

MORAN MOWS `EM DOWN: Sophomore lefty Brian Moran has developed into a key reliever for the Tar Heels thanks to his exceptional control. The Rye, N.Y., product has 25 strikeouts over his last 13 2/3 innings and owns a team-best 43-to-7 strikeout-to-walk ratio on the year. Moran sports a 1.37 ERA in 26 1/3 innings.