Here is the second part of your ACC Weekend Preview for the weekend of Feb. 25th-Feb.27th. You can check out our preview of the other two series on the weekend which started on Thursday due to Miami and Boston College facing off against MLB squads over the weekend by clicking here.
Hofstra at #8 Florida State
The Florida State Seminoles (4-0) continue their non-conference portion of their 2011 schedule by having the Hofstra Pride (0-3) visit Dick Howser Stadium for a three game set. Danny Poma leads the Pride attack as the plate with a .462 average including an RBI over the first three games of the season. Bobby Gazzola also is hitting above .400 at .429 in two games. Hofstra number one starter Jared Rogers leads the starting rotation as he has a 3.60 ERA in five games this year.
FSU heads into the weekend with a perfect 4-0 record after sweeping VMI last weekend and defeating Jacksonville on Tuesday in their only mid-week action this week. Reigning ACC Player of the Week James Ramsey leads the offense with a .615 batting average including two triples while driving in five runs. Devon Travis is also off to a fast start with a .400 batting average while hitter a homer and driving in six runs. Number 1 starter Sean Gilmartin had a solid start to the season last weekend giving up six hits in seven shutout innings to pick up a win in his first start of the year.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: HU RHP Jared Rogers So. (0-0, 3.60 ERA) vs FSU Sean Gilmartin (1-0, 0.00 ERA)
Saturday: HU RHP Rob Kumbatovic Sr. (0-1, 10.12 ERA) vs FSU Brian Busch (0-0, 3.38 ERA)
Sunday: HU TBA vs FSU Gary Merians (1-0, 0.00 ERA)
Predictions
Brian Foley: FSU Sweep
Kyle Tait: FSU Sweep
Nolan Alexander: FSU Sweep
Sean McCarty: FSU Sweep
East Carolina at #10 Virginia
East Carolina makes the trek up to Charlottesville this weekend to take on the Virginia Cavaliers in a matchup between two undefeated squads. East Carolina enters with a 3-0 record after sweeping Youngstown State last weekend. Corey Thompson leads the team in hitting with a .400 batting average while driving in four runs in the opening weekend. Mike Wright and Zach Woods both had excellent starts to their respective seasons as both of them went five shutout innings giving up five hits.
Virginia has a perfect 4-0 record as they swept through the Auburn Tournament on the opening weekend before defeating VMI in a midweek game. They are hitting as a team at .312 which is led by David Colman who has a .455 batting average in four games (three starts) while scoring three runs. Chris Taylor is also playing well early on as he is hitting .412 with five RBI and seven runs scored in the first four games of the season. Danny Hultzen leads the pitching staff with a win in his first start of the season as he went 6.2 innings giving up one run while striking out 10 batters. He is also an accomplished hitter with a .333 batting average.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Fri. – UVA LHP Danny Hultzen (1-0, 1.35 ERA) vs ECU RHP Seth Maness (1-0, 1.29 ERA)
Sat. – UVA RHP Tyler Wilson (1-0, 0.00 ERA)vs ECU RHP Zach Woods (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Sun. – UVA RHP Cody Winiarski (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs ECU RHP Mike Wright (1-0, 0.00 ERA)
Predictions
Brian Foley: UVA 2-1
Kyle Tait: UVA 2-1
Nolan Alexander: UVA 2-1
Sean McCarty: UVA 2-1
#11 Clemson vs Cincinnati, Charleston Southern, Michigan State
The Clemson Tigers will host their annual First Pitch Invitational this weekend with them facing Cincinnati on Friday before taking on Charleston Southern Saturday, and ending the tourney by taking on Michigan State. Clemson has a 2-1 record after losing the middle game of a three game set with Eastern Michigan. They are led on offense by Spencer Kieboom who is hitting .556 with eight RBI. The pitching staff is led by Kevin Brady who was outstanding against Eastern Michigan going 5.1 innings giving up one run on two hits and striking out ten batters.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: Cincinnati Brad Mergen (0-0, 6.75 ERA) vs Clemson Scott Weismann (1-0, 5.40 ERA)
Saturday: Charleston Southern Anthony Markham (1-0, 4.91 ERA) vs Clemson David Haselden (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Sunday: Michigan State Andrew Waszak (1-0, 1.80 ERA) vs Clemson Kevin Brady (1-0, 1.69 ERA)
Predictions
Brian Foley: Clemson Sweep
Kyle Tait: Clemson Sweep
Nolan Alexander: Clemson Sweep
Sean McCarty: Clemson Sweep
Seton Hall at #21 North Carolina
UNC enters the second weekend of play with a perfect 4-0 record after defeating Cal-Poly, Cal State Fullerton, Missouri, and USC all in California in the opening weekend. The offense is led by Levi Michael who is hitting .500 over the first four games of the seasons while also stealing four bases in four attempts. Jacob Stallings is also on fire as he is hitting .412 with a homer and five RBI. The pitching staff was led last weekend by Chris Munnelly who didn’t record a decision last weekend but gave up one run in 6.1 innings of work.
Seton Hall enters the weekend with a 1-2 record after losing to Penn State and Michigan State before ending the Big Ten and Big East Challenge with a win over Iowa. Frank Esposito is leading the offense with a .364 batting average while driving in two runs. Senior RHP Joe DiRocco was outstanding in his first outing of the year giving up two hits in eight shutout innings while striking out six.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: UNC Chris Munnelly, RHP (So., 0-0, 1.42) vs SHU Jon Prosinski, RHP (So., 0-0, 0.00)
Saturday: UNC Patrick Johnson, RHP (Sr., 0-0, 1.59) vs SHU Greg Terhune, LHP (So., 0-0, 7.20)
Sunday: UNC Michael Morin, RHP (So., 0-0, 11.12) vs SHU Joe DiRocco, RHP (Sr., 1-0, 0.00)
Predictions
Brian Foley: UNC Sweep
Kyle Tait: UNC Sweep
Nolan Alexander: UNC Sweep
Sean McCarty: UNC Sweep
St. John’s at #24 Georgia Tech
The St. John’s Red Storm head down to Atlanta this weekend to take on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in a key non-conference matchup between the two schools. St. John’s enters the weekend with a 2-1 overall record after defeating Minnesota and Michigan in the Big East/Big Ten Challenge but lost to Ohio State. They are led on offense by two of the most potent hitters in the Big East in Joe Panik and Jeremy Baltz. Panik enters the weekend with a .400 batting average while driving in three runs. Baltz has continued his strong college career by starting out the year with a .500 batting average while driving in seven runs. Sean Hagan will led the rotation this weekend as he tossed five shutout innings last weekend.
Georgia Tech has a 3-2 record as they set to host St. John’s. The offense is young but has been led by Jacob Esch who is batting .450 while freshman outfielder Kyle Wren is hitting .429. The pitching staff was led on the opening weekend by Mark Pope who gave up one run in 6.2 innings.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: GT RHP Mark Pope (1-0, 1.35, 6.2 IP, 6 SO) vs. SJ LHP Sean Hagan (1-0, 0.00, 5.0 IP, 4 SO)
Saturday: GT LHP Jed Bradley (0-0, 1.59, 5.2 IP, 10 SO) vs. SJ RHP Kyle Hansen (0-0, 2.25, 4.0 IP, 2 SO)
Sunday: GT RHP Buck Farmer (0-0, 0.00, 5.0 IP, 6 SO) vs. SJ LHP Brendan Lobban (0-0, 2.25, 4.0 IP, 4 SO)
Predictions
Brian Foley: St. John’s 2-1
Kyle Tait: GT 2-1
Nolan Alexander: GT 2-1
Sean McCarty: GT 2-1
Army at Maryland
After a tough opening weekend against Texas, the Maryland Terps will host the Army Black Knights. Maryland enters the series with a 2-3 record after a midweek victory over Navy. Freshman Mike Montville has led the offense hitting .444 with a homer and two RBI. The pitching staff was led by both David Carroll and Eric Potter pitched six innings while giving up only one run to the Longhorns.
Army enters the series with a 1-3 record as they defeated Davidson but lost to Radford twice and Georgetown once. Clint Moore leads the offensive attack with a .467 batting average while hitting a homer and driving in eight runs. Kevin McKague can also be a factory as he is hitting .412 with a homer and three RBI. Logan Lee had a good start to the season with a 1-0 record and a 2.25 ERA as he went only four innings in his first appearance.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Game 1: RHP Sander Beck (0-1, 5.06) vs. LHP Nick Dignacco (0-0, 7.71)
Game 2: RHP David Carroll (1-0, 1.50) vs. LHP Logan Lee (1-0, 2.25)
Game 3: LHP Eric Potter (0-0, 1.50) vs. RHP Chris Rowley (0-0, 3.60)
Predictions
Brian Foley: Maryland Sweep
Kyle Tait: Maryland Sweep
Nolan Alexander: Maryland sweep
Sean McCarty: Maryland 2-1
Wake Forest vs Minnesota, Northwestern, Georgetown
Wake Forest enters this weekend with a 1-3 record after getting swept in Baton Rouge last weekend by LSU before bouncing back with a 2-1 victory in extra innings over Western Carolina. The Deacons have one of the worst offenses in the entire country as they have a team batting average of .168. The top hitter on the team is Matt Conway who is hitting .200 with four RBI. The pitching staff struggled in Baton Rouge but Zach White is the top pitching in his two appearances incuding one start totaling 6.1 innings of work while giving up only one run.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: TBA
Saturday: TBA
Sunday: TBA
Predictions
Brian Foley: Wake Forest 1-2
Kyle Tait: Wake Forest 2-1
Nolan Alexander: Wake Forest 2-1
Sean McCarty: Wake Forest 2-1
NC State vs Pacific, Cal, Coastal Carolina
One of my more disappointing teams in the opening weekend was NC State who went 1-2 against Elon. They are led on offense by Chris Diaz who is hitting .667 with a homer and 13 RBI in only three games this year. Pratt Maynard is also solid in the lineup hitting .538 driving in five runs. The pitching staff struggled on the opening weekend but Danny Healey lead them as he went five innings giving up one run.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: UP Marcus Pointer (0-1, 7.11) vs. NC State Josh Easley (0-1, 14.54)
Saturday: Cal Justin Jones (0-0, 2.57) vs. NC State Cory Mazzoni (1-0, 6.00)
Sunday: CCU Jim Birmingham (0-0, 5.14) vs. NC State Danny Healey (1-0, 1.80)
Predictions
Brian Foley: NC State 1-2
Kyle Tait: NC State 0-3
Nolan Alexander: NC State 2-1
Sean McCarty: NC State 2-1
Niagara at Virginia Tech
The Virginia Tech Hokies entertain the Niagara Purple Eagles this weekend in a four game series. Virginia Tech went 2-1 last weekend with victories over Indiana and Tennessee Tech but lost to Coastal Carolina to end the weekend. They bounced back on Tuesday by defeating USC Upstate to up their record to 3-1. Michael Seaborn and Chad Morgan are tied for the team lead in batting average at .429. The pitching staff is led by Joe Mantiply who picked up a win last weekend as he went seven innings giving up two runs on nine hits.
The Purple Eagles of Niagara struggled on their opening weekend against Wichita State as the Shockers swept them. Starting freshman pitcher Joel Klock gave the Purple Eagles seven strong innings in his first collegiate game last weekend against Wichita State. He had five strikeouts, while allowing five runs and scattering seven hits.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: VT LHP Joe Mantiply (1-0) vs. Niagara LHP Joel Klock (0-1)
Saturday Game 1: VT RHP Marc Zecchino (0-0) vs. Niagara LHP Tyler Spear (0-1)
Saturday Game 2: VT RHP Patrick Scoggin (0-0) vs. Niagara RHP Kody Kasper (0-1)
Sunday: VT LHP Eddie Campbell (0-0) vs Niagara RHP John Wilson (0-1)
Predictions
Brian Foley: VT 4-0
Kyle Tait: VT 4-0
Nolan Alexander: VT 4-0
Sean McCarty: VT 4-0
Villanova at Duke
The Blue Devils enter their three game series against Villanova on a three game modest winning streak. They grabbed the last game of the Richmond series to capture the series victory before defeating Campbell and NC Central in midweek contests. Jordan Betts is leading the offensive charged as he is hitting .389 with four RBI. Leading the rotation is Dennis O’Grady who pitched seven shutout innings against Richmond giving up five hits.
The Villanova Wildcats have a 2-1 record after taking two out of three games from Norfolk State to open the season. The offense is led by Matt Fleishman as he is hitting .667 with seven RBI. The starting rotation is led by Kyle McMyne who is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA.
Probable Starting Pitchers
Friday: DU Chase Bebout, RHP (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs VIL Kyle McMyne, RHP (1-0, 3.60 ERA)
Saturday: DU Eric Pfisterer, LHP (0-0, 5.79 ERA) vs VIL Kyle Helisek, LHP (0-0, 6.75 ERA)
Sunday: DU Dennis O’Grady (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs VIL Matt Lengel, RHP (0-0, 3.00 ERA
Predictions
Brian Foley: Duke sweep
Kyle Tait: Duke 3-0
Nolan Alexander: Duke 2-1
Sean McCarty: Duke 2-1
1 comment
As long As Hultzen continues to pitch the way he is….25k’s in 13+ inns…you can count at least 1 weekend victory for UVA…as one shout told me last night…We have the 9th pick in the draft and I’m not sure he’ll be available.
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