The ACC has a relatively light schedule this week with only three in-conference series. The best series is between Florida State and Boston College. Florida State enters that series with a three game led over Clemson while having only a 3.5 game lead over Boston College. The other series with some importance is between Wake Forest and North Carolina. The Tar Heels are in need of a sweep this weekend if they are going to get a bid into the ACC Tournament. The last ACC series is between Clemson and Maryland where the Tigers are looking to sweep the Terps. Georgia Tech heads out of conference against a feisty Illinois-Chicago squad, Barry University visits Miami (FL) for two games and Savannah State will face off against Virginia Tech to round out the ACC weekend slate.
#8 Florida State at Boston College
Florida State makes their long trip to Chestnut Hill this weekend to take on the Boston College Eagles. The Seminoles enter the series with a 34-11 overall record while leading the ACC Atlantic Division with a 14-7 record. They enter the weekend on a three game winning steak after taking the final two games of their series against LeMoyne and winning a marathon 13 inning game against Jacksonville. The Noles are led on offense by Tyler Holt who enters the weekend with a .351 batting average while hitting nine homers and 34 RBI on the year. He is also a terror on the basepaths as he has stolen 18 bases in 19 attempts. Two-way player Mike McGee is second on the squad with a .346 average, 10 homers, and 52 RBI. The pitching rotation has been led this season by Sean Gilmartin who is 6-4 with a 3.80 ERA in 11 starts.
Boston College enters with a 26-20 overall record while being 12-12 in the ACC. They enter the weekend on a two game winning streak as they defeated Northeastern and Harvard in mid-week action. The Eagles are on a three game losing streak in ACC play as they dropped all three games in their most recent ACC series against Virginia Tech. Senior leadoff man Robbie Anston leads the offense with a .337 average while hitting three homers and driving in 28 runs. Senior outfielder John Spatola is having a breakout season as he is hitting .333 with 12 homers and 45 RBI. The BC pitching has been suspect this season as they have a 6.09 team ERA. They are led on the hill by Pat Dean who is 5-1 with a 3.60 ERA in nine starts.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: Florida State – LHP, Sean Gilmartin (6-4) vs. Boston College – RHP, Mike Dennhardt (3-6)
Saturday: Florida State – LHP – Brian Busch (4-0) vs. Boston College – LHP, Pat Dean (5-1)
Sunday: Florida State – RHP – Scott Sitz (4-0) vs. Boston College – RHP, John Leonard (2-1)
Predictions
Brian Foley: FSU 3-0
Skip McCarty: FSU 2-1
FSU Series Notes
BC Series Notes
#22 Clemson at Maryland
Clemson makes the trip north this weekend to take on the Maryland Terrapins in ACC action. Clemson enters the series with a 28-17 record while being 11-10 in ACC play. They are currently on a three game winning streak as they took the final three games of their four game series against Florida Gulf Coast last weekend. They are led by Kyle Parker at the plate as he is hitting .377 with 16 homers and 45 RBI in only 42 games this season. Casey Harman has served as the number 1 starter for the Tigers this season as he is 5-1 with a 3.31 ERA in 11 starts.
Maryland enters the weekend with a 16-34 record while being 4-20 in ACC play. They are led on offense by Brandon Padula who is hitting .343 with four homers and 30 RBI. The biggest problem this season with the Terps has been the pitching staff which has a team ERA of 6.98. Brett Harman has been the number 1 starter this season as he is 4-7 with a 4.38 ERA in 12 appearances (11 starts).
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday (6:00): CU LHP Casey Harman (5-1, 3.31) vs UMD RHP Brett Harman (4-7, 4.38)
Saturday (1:00): CU Scott Weismann (4-2, 4.60) vs UMD LHP Eric Potter (2-9, 8.39)
Sunday (1:00): CU TBA vs UMD RHP Sander Beck (0-8, 7.64)
Predictions
Brian Foley: CU 3-0
Sean McCarty: Clemson 3-0
Clemson Series Notes
Maryland Series Notes
Wake Forest at #24 North Carolina
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons head to Chapel Hill this weekend to take on the North Carolina Tar Heels. The Demon Deacons enter with a 12-32 overall record while being 4-17 in ACC play. They are led on offense by senior catcher Mike Murray who is hitting .338 with three homers and 37 RBI. Steven Brooks is second on the team with a .327 average with five homers, 27 RBI, while having 22 stolen bases in 26 attempts.
UNC enters the weekend with a 28-17 overall record while being 8-13 in ACC play. They are led on offense by Dillon Hazlett who is hitting .357 with three homers and 41 RBI. Matt Harvey has been the number 1 pitcher this season for the Tar Heels and is considered one of the best pro prospects in college baseball. He is 5-2 with a 2.65 ERA in 10 starts totaling 68 innings pitched.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Fri. 7 p.m. WF Tim Cooney, LHP vs UNC Matt Harvey, RHP
Sat. 1 p.m. WF Austin Stadler, LHP vs UNC Chris Munnelly, RHP
Sun. 1 p.m. WF Michael Dimock, RHP vs UNC Patrick Johnson, RHP
Predictions
Brian Foley: UNC 3-0
Sean McCarty: UNC 3-0
Wake Forest Series Notes
UNC Series Notes
OUT OF CONFERENCE GAMES
Illinois-Chicago at #7 Georgia Tech
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday, May 7 (7 p.m.) – Russ Chandler Stadium (Atlanta, Ga.)
Illinois-Chicago – TBA vs Georgia Tech – Deck McGuire, Jr., RHP (5-3, 2.94 ERA, 84 K’s)
Saturday, May 8 (6 p.m.) – Russ Chandler Stadium (Atlanta, Ga.)
Illinois-Chicago – TBA vs Georgia Tech – Brandon Cumpton, Jr., RHP (6-2, 5.50 ERA, 36 K’s)
Sunday, May 9 (1 p.m.) – Russ Chandler Stadium (Atlanta, Ga.)
Illinois-Chicago – TBA vs Georgia Tech – Jed Bradley, So., LHP (7-2, 3.82 ERA, 72 K’s)
UIC Series Notes
GT Series Notes
Barry at #12 Miami (FL)
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: BARRY – RHP Brian Santana (3-0, 3.16) vs. MIAMI – LHP Chris Hernandez (6-2, 3.32)
Saturday: BARRY – RHP Scott Sexton (2-5, 6.04) vs. MIAMI – RHP Jason Santana (4-2, 5.01)
Barry Series Notes
Miami Series Notes
Savannah State at #18 Virginia Tech
Probable Starting Pitchers
Saturday: Savannah State TBA vs VT TBA
Sunday: Savannah State TBA vs VT TBA
Towson at NC State
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: NC State: Felix Roque (1-0, 4.07) vs. Towson: Austin Hurd (2-3, 8.55)
Saturday: NC State: Jake Buchanan (5-4, 4.14) vs. Towson: Michael Trionfo (2-5, 7.44)
Sunday: NC State: Cory Mazzoni (5-2, 5.09) vs. Towson: Mike Bronakoski (2-4, 7.36) or Tyler Austin (2-4, 9.00)
Towson Series Notes
NC State Series Notes
