University of North Carolina Athletics
The series opener is scheduled for Friday, March 15, at 7 p.m. Saturday’s game is also set for 7 p.m., while Sunday’s finale is slated for 1 p.m. All three games will stream on ACCNX.
The No. 15 Tar Heels (16-2, 3-0 ACC) enter the series riding an 11-game winning streak after sweeping a two-game midweek series from Rutgers in Chapel Hill. Carolina swept Pitt in its opening ACC series last weekend at Boshamer Stadium, giving the Tar Heels their second 3-0 conference start in the last three seasons.
Miami (9-7, 2-1 ACC) took two-of-three from No. 13 Virginia last weekend before falling at Florida Atlantic on Tuesday.
UNC is 1-2 away from Boshamer Stadium. It posted a win on the road at No. 21 Campbell after falling to No. 11 East Carolina on the road in Greenville, N.C., and at a neutral site match-up in Fayetteville, N.C.
The Tar Heels have lost five of the last six games to the Hurricanes and trail the all-time series, 37-46-1. Hunter Stokely gave UNC its lone win over UM in the previous season two seasons with an 11th-inning walk-off home run in Chapel Hill a year ago.
Pitching Matchups
Entering week five of the season, Carolina is ranked in the top 16 by Baseball America, D1 Baseball, Perfect Game, and the USA Today Sports Coaches Poll, peaking at No. 11 in the NCBWA.
ABOUT THE CANES
Miami is 9-7 and 2-1 in the ACC in its first season under coach J.D. Artega. The Hurricanes are hosting a ranked opponent for the third straight weekend after welcoming No. 4 Florida and No. 13 Virginia to Coral Gables. The Canes dropped two games to UF before taking the series from UVA. The Hurricanes rank first in the ACC with a 1.84 strikeout-to-walk ratio and are fifth in the conference with 10.2 strikeouts per game. Miami is hitting .307 as a team and slugging .566, led by Daniel Cuvet with a .455 batting average and a .955 slugging percentage.
North Carolina has won 11 consecutive games entering the series against Miami. It’s the longest winning streak by a Tar Heel team since 2017, when UNC recorded 11 straight triumphs from March 28 to April 15. The last time Carolina won more than 11 consecutive games was in 2013, when it recorded 14 straight victories from April 3 to April 21.
ACC ROAD SERIES WINS
Carolina won four of its five ACC road series last season, taking two of three from Georgia Tech, Notre Dame and Virginia Tech while winning its lone game against Pitt (the other two were canceled due to inclement weather). Its only ACC road series loss was at Clemson to end the regular season.
DOUBLING UP
The Tar Heels lead the ACC in doubles play turned with 17. Senior Parks Harber and Colby Wilkerson have helped turn two 13 times each, and Alex Madera has been a part of 12 double plays. Carolina has turned two doubles plays in a game three times this season.
GONE IN 60
Junior Vance Honeycutt became the 12th player in school history to steal 60 career bases Tuesday night, swiping two against Rutgers. Honeycutt has been successful on 12 of 13 (.923) stolen base attempts this season and 60 of 70 (.857) in his career. He is one of only two players in Carolina lore with 40 home runs (43) and 60 stolen bases.
OFF AND RUNNING
UNC ranks second in the ACC in stolen bases with 39, one behind conference leader Louisville (40). Honeycutt ranks second in the league with 12, and Anthony Donofrio ranks fifth with 10.
CLOSE SHAVES
The Tar Heels are 5-1 in one-run games this season and have won three in a row. Senior reliever Matt Poston leads Carolina with three saves, which includes a pair of saves in 2-1 victories over East Carolina and Pitt. UNC was 5-9 in one-run games last season.
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