CHAPEL HILL, NC- There is a pretty important baseball game tonight, Friday, June 7 in the Chapel Hill super regional between the West Virginia Mountaineers (36-22, 14-14 away) and the North Carolina Tarheels (45-13, 35-3 at home). In fact, there will be at least two of them.
The Mountaineers are making their first ever super regional–technically, the Sweet 16– in school history. North Carolina advanced past the supers and made an appearance in the College World Series back in 2018.
West Virginia fans interest in college baseball has surged over the last few seasons as head coach Randy Mazey–who is retiring after this season concludes– has elevated the program to new heights never seen before. On top of that, WVU features J.J. Wetherholt, an all-American and probable top-10 draft pick in this year’s MLB draft. However, Wetherholt has yet to record a hit in the NCAA tourney which makes WVU’s Cinderella run even more impressive.
Here are some numbers and a preview of the best-of-three series.
WVU Statistical Leaders:
(Hitting)
Batting Average:
J.J. Wetherholt- .345
Logan Sauve- .314
Reed Chumley .310
Sam White .309
Home Runs:
Reed Chumley- 15
Grant Hussey- 12
Kyle West- 12
Sam White- 10
RBI:
Reed Chumley- 48
Sam White- 42
Kyle West- 38
Grant Hussey- 37
Logan Sauve- 37
Total Hits:
Sam White- 64
Reed Chumley- 58
Logan Sauve- 55
Kyle West- 47
UNC Statistical Leaders:
(Hitting):
Batting Average:
Gavin Gallaher- .348
Casey Cook- .345
Anthony Donofrio- .344
Parks Harber- .343
Home Runs:
Vance Honeycutt- 24
Parks Harber- 20
Casey Cook- 18
Alberto Osuna- 14
RBI:
Casey Cook- 76
Vance Honeycutt- 62
Parks Harber- 60
Luke Stevenson- 57
Total Hits:
Casey Cook- 82
Anthony Donforio- 75
Parks Harber- 74
Vance Honeycutt- 72
Top Pitchers from each team:
WVU:
Derek Clark- (8-2) 89.1 IP, 76 Hits, 20 BB, 83 K’s, 2.82 ERA (was Tuscon Regional MVP)
Tyler Switalski- (5-2) 60.2 IP, 62 Hits, 34 BB, 54 K’s, 5.34 ERA
Aidan Major- (5-4) 65.2 IP, 61 Hits, 35 BB, 76 K’s, 5.48 ERA
UNC:
Matthew Matthijs- (12-4), 55.2 IP, 47 Hits, 15 BB, 55 K’s, 3.56 ERA
Shea Sprague- (3-1)- 69.1 IP, 68 Hits, 16 BB, 58 K’s, 3.76 ERA
Jason DeCaro- (5-1), 79.1 IP, 68 Hits, 38 BB, 67 K’s, 4.08 ERA
On paper, the numbers favor North Carolina. They have several players that have put up excellent numbers all season and it’s a big reason they were a top 10 team all year long. But numbers and stats do not matter in a 3-game series. All that matters is which team can execute, get timely hits, and make critical pitches in pressure situations.
This is brand new territory for the Mountaineers. For the Tarheels, not so much. North Carolina is 35-3 on their home field this season. On the flip side, WVU is just 14-14 in true road games. Still, this series is expected to be a good one and the Mountain state will be tuning in from all over. The winner will advance to next week’s College World Series.
All times eastern
Game 1: Friday, June 7 @ 6:00 PM, ESPN 2
Game 2: Saturday, June 8 @ 8:00 PM, ESPN 2
Game 3 (if necessary), Sunday, June 9 @ 3:00 PM, ESPN 2
