March 28, 2008
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CARY, N.C. -
Senior third baseman Chad Flack belted a go-ahead three-run home run in the fifth inning, and sophomore right-hander Alex White matched a career high with 11 strikeouts to send No. 3 North Carolina to a 5-2 win over NC State Friday at Cary's USA Baseball National Training Complex. The Tar Heels (21-4, 8-2 ACC) won for the 11th time in their last 12 games, while the Wolfpack (14-9, 4-5 ACC) dropped the fourth game in its last five outings.
Flack, who has driven in 16 runs in 12 career games against State over the last four years, was 2-for-3 with a single and his fourth home run of the season. Right fielder Tim Fedroff went 3-for-3 with a walk for his 12th multi-hit effort in the last 16 games to lead Carolina to its seventh straight game with 10-plus hits.
White (4-2) fanned 11 batters for the second time in as many career starts against the NC State. Over 5 2/3 innings, the Greenville, N.C., native issued a season-high five walks but limited State to just two runs on four hits, only two of which came after the second inning. Relievers Brian Moran, Colin Bates and Rob Wooten combined for 3 1/3 shutout innings, with Wooten picking up his third save. Carolina's pitchers combined for a season-high 17 strikeouts on the night.
NC State starter Clayton Shunick (2-3) also went 5 2/3 and struck out seven but allowed five runs - four earned - on nine hits and four walks. He held the Tar Heels scoreless on four hits over the first four innings, but was tagged for five runs in the fifth. Right fielder Matt Payne had two of State's five hits.
Carolina second baseman Kyle Seager and center fielder Seth Williams extended career-best hitting streaks to 21 and 16 games, respectively, while Flack hit safely for the eighth straight game with six multi-hit games over this stretch.
State grabbed an early lead on a two-run single by designated hitter Jeremy Synan in the second. A leadoff single by Payne and a walk to left fielder Ryan Pond put two on, and a sacrifice bunt from first baseman Pat Ferguson moved the runners in to scoring position. Synan then sent the first pitch he saw into center field for a 2-0 lead.
After White struck out the side in the top of the fifth to strand runners at the corners, a pair of State fielding miscues and Flack's fourth career home run against the Wolfpack gave the Tar Heels the lead in the bottom of the inning. Ackley reached on a throwing error by shortstop Tommy Foschi and Fedroff singled for the third time to start the one-out rally. Seager followed with a bloop single to left field that Pond misplayed, allowing both runners to score and tie the game.
Federowicz then singled to right to put two on for Flack, who hit an 0-1 offering from Shunick to left to give the Tar Heels a 5-2 lead. The three-run homer was Flack's 39th of his career, which is tied for seventh in UNC history. The three RBI on the shot also moved Flack into a tie for fourth on the Tar Heels' career list with 187. He needs just nine base hits to set the school record for career hits.
State loaded the bases in sixth to end the night for White, but Moran came on to strike out pinch hitter Devon Cartwright to strand all three runners and preserve the three-run cushion. He followed with three strikeouts in the seventh and fanned all four batters he faced.
Bates followed with a one-two-three eighth inning, and Wooten worked out of a jam in the ninth with a game-ending double play to secure the victory.
The three-game series continues at 2 p.m. Saturday and 1:30 p.m. Sunday.
