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Miami Hurricanes Baseball Set to Face North Carolina in ACC Semifinal

By Alan Rubenstein

Jun 20, 2016; Omaha, NE, USA; Miami Hurricanes pitcher Frankie Bartow (52) throws to first base against the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the sixth inning in the 2016 College World Series at TD Ameritrade Park. UC Santa Barbara defeated Miami 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 20, 2016; Omaha, NE, USA; Miami Hurricanes pitcher Frankie Bartow (52) throws to first base against the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the sixth inning in the 2016 College World Series at TD Ameritrade Park. UC Santa Barbara defeated Miami 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /
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After a third consecutive late-inning victory, the Miami Hurricanes find themselves in the ACC Tournament semifinals.

The second-seeded Tar Heels advanced to the semifinals with a 12-4 victory over North Carolina State Friday night. The Miami Hurricanes had a scintillating 5-2 victory over Wake Forest on Friday afternoon.

Miami scored one in the seventh, and two each in the eighth and ninth for the come from behind victory. Yesterday’s win vaulted the Hurricanes from 47th to 39th in the NCAA RPI. A win on Saturday would virtually assure them of a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Two more wins and they don’t have to worry about an at-large berth.

A win on Saturday would virtually assure them of a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Two more wins and they don’t have to worry about an at-large berth.

North Carolina won two out of three in the regular season in Chapel Hill against the Hurricanes in March. The Hurricanes salvaged the series with a 6-2 victory in the final game.

Right-handers Luca Dalatri and Jesse Lapore will start for North Carolina and Miami. Dalatri got the start in the Tar Heels win in the second of the three games between the teams earlier this season.

He lasted only 4.1 innings. Dalatri was yanked despite the Tar Heels leading 4-3 at the time of his departure. The 6’6 freshman allowed three runs, two earned on nine hits on nine hits with four strikeouts. UNC would go on to a 6-3 win.

Lepore has had an uneven season. He was shelled by the Tar Heels in the opening game of their series this season. The Junior allowed six runs, five earned on seven hits with five walks and five strikeouts.

The Heels scored two in the first and third and one in the second off of Lepore and added one more in both the fourth and sixth off the Hurricanes’ bullpen. Miami was able to hold UNC to four hits in the game two loss.

Rightfielder Brandon Riley has done the most damage against Miami this season. He went six for 12 with three runs scored and four RBIs in the three games. He is hitting .307 with six home runs and 49 RBIs on the season.

The Tar Heels offense isn’t as potent as Wake Forest’s, but they have tremendous balance throughout the lineup. Five Heels are hitting over .300, three of which are over .340 and seven have over 40 RBIs. Unlike Wake, none have double figures in home runs.

North Carolina gets by more on pitching and defense than hitting. That should work to the anemic Miami offense’s advantage. UNC led the ACC with a .978 fielding percentage and they were second with a 2.78 ERA. They also led the conference with a .219 batting average against.

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    • Lepore and the Hurricanes bullpen is also going to have to work hard to get the ball over the plate. UNC finished second in the ACC with 288 walks. They rarely strikeout and have good speed. UNC finished second in the ACC with 100 stolen base attempts and fourth with 75 stolen bases.

    The game should be a low-scoring one. Miami is going to have to work hard to get runs across the plate. They have been getting a lot of clutch hitting during their six-game winning streak in the last week and a half. North Carolina was second in the ACC allowing just 33 home runs this season.

    The Hurricanes could use a strong start out of Lepore. Jeb Bargfeldt, Gregory Veliz and Andrew Cabezas are all likely unavailable Saturday. Bargfeldt threw 98 pitches in five innings yesterday. Veliz threw 64 and Cabezas 26 in relief in the win over Wake. Cabezas’performance came after pitching 6.1 innings in Tuesday’s win over Georgia Tech.

    Cooper Hammond threw 10 pitches in two-thirds of an inning yesterday. Evan McKendry started Tuesday’s victory and should be available on Saturday. Closer Frankie Bartow is also well rested.

    Next: Miami Hurricanes Baseball Upsets Wake Forest to Advance to ACC Semis

    Next Game: The Miami-North Carolina winner will play the Florida State-Duke winner in Sunday’s Championship game. The Seminoles led 5-0 in the eighth as we posted this article.

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