With five consecutive wins, the UNC baseball team is playing much better since dropping two of three to East Carolina in February.
North Carolina started its current winning streak with an 8-2 domination of VCU on Tuesday, Feb. 27. The Diamond Heels made quick work of Longwood the next day, then continued their hot streak by sweeping Princeton over the weekend.
While offense has easily highlighted UNC’s recent run, it’s the pitching which has improved significantly. North Carolina allowed opponents to score five runs in five of its first seven games, but limited Princeton to just 10 total runs this past weekend.
In the latest D1 Baseball Rankings, despite dominating as of late, the Diamond Heels stayed put at 16th.
Just ahead of UNC is 11-1 Alabama, who beat Indiana and Arizona in the Frisco Classic over the weekend, while Texas Tech sits at 17th.
North Carolina pitcher Folger Boaz, the younger brother of former Tar Heels quarterback Jefferson Boaz, is making a strong early case for staff ace. He’s won both his starts, struck out a team-leading 15 batters and carries a stellar 2.16 earned run average.
UNC hitters are also seeing the ball extremely well, with seven starters hitting at least .300. Reigning ACC Defensive Player of the Year Vance Honeycutt leads the Diamond Heels with six home runs, while Casey Cook and Alex Madera are both hitting .400.
North Carolina will travel to Campbell on Tuesday for a 6 p.m. first pitch, then host a historically-struggling Pitt squad that’s off to an 8-win start this coming weekend.
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