Game Day: UNC vs. Longwood, Winthrop Preview
Two-game midweek slate returns to Boshamer Stadium
Coming off a season in which the ACC played a reduced nonconference schedule, North Carolina will play a pair of midweek games on back-to-back days for the first time in two years when it hosts Longwood and Winthrop on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Here’s what you need to know ahead of both games, which are scheduled for 4 p.m. at Boshamer Stadium.
Matchups: UNC (6-1) vs. Longwood (3-5), Winthrop (2-5)
UNC ranks: No. -/24/24 (Baseball America, D1Baseball, USA Today Coaches Poll)
Longwood ranks: No. -/-/- (Baseball America, D1Baseball, USA Today Coaches Poll)
Winthrop ranks: No. -/-/- (Baseball America, D1Baseball, USA Today Coaches Poll)
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Pitching matchups
Tuesday: RHP Connor Bovair (1-0, 3.38 ERA) vs. LHP Andrew Melnyk (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
A weekend rotation candidate throughout the offseason, Connor Bovair will make his first career start for the Tar Heels against Longwood. As a true freshman at Siena last season, the righty made nine starts, posting a 4.77 ERA in 54 2/3 innings. He’s made three relief appearances so far this season, allowing two runs on two hits and three walks while striking out eight in 5 1/3 innings. In last Tuesday’s game against Elon, Bovair relieved Will Sandy in the fifth and surrendered one hit and one walk while striking out seven over three scoreless frames.
The Lancers will counter with Andrew Melnyk, who will be toeing the rubber for the first time this season. Named by Baseball America as a sleeper candidate for the Big South Pitcher of Year award, the lefty recorded a 5.84 ERA in 74 innings last season, striking out 55 and walking 23 over 14 starts. His only previous appearance against a Power 5 team came on Feb. 18, 2020, when he issued a walk in a scoreless inning of relief at N.C. State.
Wednesday: LHP Will Sandy (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. TBA
Coming off a productive offseason in which he worked to rebuild his confidence, Will Sandy got his season off to a strong start last Tuesday against Elon, giving up one run (unearned) on three hits and a hit-by-pitch while striking out three in four innings. The performance lowered his ERA in six career midweek starts to 2.66 (six earned runs in 20 1/3 innings).
Carter Sutton started Winthrop’s lone midweek game, a 7-1 loss to South Carolina last Tuesday in which he allowed three runs (zero earned) on three hits and three walks in 2 1/3 innings. The right-hander is coming off a 59-pitch relief outing on Sunday, so if he can’t got, the Eagles could turn to righty Macklin Ohs (0-0, 13.50 ERA) or lefty Aaron White (0-0, 0.00 ERA). Ohs made three starts last season. White made one.
Scouting the Lancers
Picked to finish last in the league in the Big South preseason coaches poll, Longwood outscored Maryland Eastern Shore 37-17 in a season-opening three-game sweep of the Hawks. The Lancers, however, are coming off a trying week in which they lost to VCU and N.C. State in the midweek before dropping three games to Elon – which UNC beat 5-1 last Tuesday.
Entering Monday, Longwood was tied for 26th nationally with 80 hits, tied for 33rd with four sacrifice bunts and tied for 46th with 56 runs. Left fielder Michael Peterson (.400/.464/.560, four stolen bases) and first baseman Hunter Gilliam (.333/.406/.815, four homers and 11 RBIs) are pacing the team offensively, but designated hitter Eliot Dix (.340/.410/.488, six homers and 39 RBIs in 2021) and center fielder Michael Dolberry (.315/.408/.461 in 2021) entered the season as potential Big South Player of the Year candidates. They’re currently hitting .276/.300/.345 and .238/.304/.238, respectively.
The Lancers’ pitching staff entered Monday ranked 236th nationally in ERA (7.42) and tied for 273rd in strikeout-to-walk ratio (1.00, 44 strikeouts and 44 walks). Even closer Logan Berrier – who posted a 3.86 ERA with three saves and 41 strikeouts in 37 1/3 innings last season – has struggled early, giving up three runs in five innings.
Scouting the Eagles
Picked to finish sixth in the league in the Big South preseason coaches poll, Winthrop won its first two games against Eastern Michigan, but coming off a three-game sweep at the hands of Liberty, the Eagles have lost five in a row.
Despite returning eight of last year’s top 12 hitters, Winthrop ranks in the bottom 50 nationally in batting average (.203, 262nd), scoring (3.4 runs per game, tied for 259th) and slugging percentage (.300, 247th). Jack Spyke – a Big South Freshman of the Year candidate who has appeared at first base, third base, catcher and designated hitter – has been the Eagles’ most consistent hitter, slashing .286/.464/.381. Catcher Ty Hooks (.343/.414/.401 last season) and second baseman Joey Tepper (.314/.434/.443 last season) are the team’s most notable returners. They’re hitting .273/.429/.273 and .259/.333/.444, respectively, to start the year.
On the mound, righty Tyler Jones and lefty Parker Whittle are expected to anchor the staff, but they’ve combined to allow 14 runs (12 earned) over 14 innings. As a staff, the Eagles entered Monday ranked 221st nationally in ERA (6.86) and tied for 253rd in strikeout-to-walk ratio (1.20, 48 strikeouts and 40 walks).
Numbers to know
Tuesday’s game will be just the second between the Tar Heels and Longwood. The other came on May 7, 2009, when UNC won 5-4 on Dustin Ackley’s walk-off solo homer in the 12th inning.
UNC leads the all-time series with Winthrop, 19-4. The Tar Heels and Eagles last met on May 7, 2019, when Aaron Sabato and Jackson Hesterlee each drove in four runs in a 13-9 win at Boshamer Stadium.
UNC head coach Scott Forbes spent three years as an assistant coach at Winthrop from 2003-05.
Entering Monday, the Tar Heels’ offense ranked in the top 50 nationally in: home runs (10, tied for 22nd), home runs per game (1.43, tied for 22nd), stolen bases (13, tied for 39th), stolen bases per game (1.86, tied for 48th) and slugging percentage (.476, tied for 49th).
Fifth-year outfielder Angel Zarate has reached base in all seven games this season, extending his on-base streak to 30 games, dating back to last season. In that span, he’s slashing .370/.466/.583 with seven doubles, two triples, four homers and 19 walks compared to just 10 strikeouts.
After playing sparingly in his first two seasons at UNC, Zarate has hit .348/.438/.500 in 74 games over the last three seasons. He’s drawn 44 walks compared to 32 strikeouts in that span.
Fourth-year shortstop Danny Serretti has played in 142 games during his UNC career, making 141 starts. No other Tar Heel has played in more than 108 games or made more than 78 starts at the Division I level.
Sophomore infielder Johnny Castagnozzi’s nine hits in the first four games were the most by a UNC player through the first four games of a season since Levi Michael had nine in 2011.
Castagnozzi became the only player to record multiple hits in each of the Tar Heels’ first four games since Mike Fox became UNC’s head coach in 1999.
Castagnozzi is slashing .458/.536/.708 and has struck out just four times in 28 plate appearances.
Sophomore catcher Tomas Frick drove in five runs in the Tar Heels’ first three games. He recorded 16 RBIs in 53 games last season.
With his leadoff home run in the bottom of the fourth inning of the season opener, freshman outfielder Vance Honeycutt became the first Tar Heel to homer in his first collegiate at-bat since Drew Poulk on Feb. 16, 2007, against Seton Hall.
Honeycutt’s three hits in the season opener were the most by a UNC player in his collegiate debut since Wood Myers had three against the College of Charleston on Feb. 15, 2014.
Honeycutt’s four homers are tied for the eighth most nationally and tied for the second most by any freshman – N.C. State’s Tommy White has hit nine, and Western Kentucky’s Ty Batusich has also hit four.
Honeycutt is tied for 19th nationally in slugging percentage (1.000).
Honeycutt’s seven stolen bases are tied for the seventh most nationally and are the most by a Tar Heel freshman since Logan Warmoth and Brian Miller had 11 and 10, respectively, in 2015.
Honeycutt has registered three multi-steal performances in seven games. No UNC freshman had previously recorded two multi-steal games in a season since Blair Waggett in 2003.
Entering Monday, the Tar Heels’ pitching staff ranked in the top 50 nationally in: ERA (1.60, tied for eighth), strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.53, eighth), shutouts (2, tied for ninth), walks allowed per nine innings (2.47, 11th), WHIP (1.02, 23rd), hits allowed per nine innings (6.68, tied for 39th) and strikeouts per nine innings (11.2, 46th).
UNC’s bullpen has been phenomenal to start the year, giving up nine runs (six earned) while striking out 48 and walking 10 in 30 2/3 innings.
Third-year lefty Shawn Rapp has given up one run (unearned) while striking out 12 in 6 2/3 innings over six appearances, the most in the country. Over the last two seasons, he’s registered a 3.03 ERA as a reliever (12 earned runs in 35 2/3 innings over 26 appearances).
Fifth-year senior Caden O’Brien’s 90 career appearances (six starts) are the sixth most among active Division I players.
Frick threw out 15 basestealers last season, the most by a Tar Heel freshman catcher since Fox became UNC’s head coach in 1999. Chris Iannetta and Tim Federowicz each threw out 14 in 2002 and 2006, respectively.