Bulldogs Playing at UNC Wilmington Tourney This Weekend

WILMINGTON, N.C. - The UNC Asheville baseball travels to the coast this weekend as the Bulldogs will take part in the Hughes Brother Challenge Tournament. Asheville plays four games in the tournament, two against N.C. State two vs. UNC Wilmington.

Third-year head coach Tom Smith knows his young Bulldog team will be tested this weekend in the three-day tourney. Asheville faces N.C. State at Noon today and then UNC Wilmington at 4 p.m. On Saturday, the Bulldogs go against N.C. State at Noon. The tournament finishes for Asheville on Sunday at Noon when the Bulldogs take on UNC Wilmington again.

"We're going to have our hands full this weekend," commented Smith. "Both N.C. State and UNC Wilmington are very good teams. We're going to have to be at our best to have a chance to compete with these programs.

"However, to be good you need to play good teams," added Smith. "I was quite encouraged on Tuesday at Wake Forest. We trailed 8-3 early, tied it up and though we lost 9-8, I liked the way we fought the whole day. We're going to need efforts like that throughout this weekend."

The Bulldogs are 6-3 on the young season and off to their best start since the 2006 campaign. Billy Creighton has been leading Asheville in the power department with 14 RBI and three home runs in the early going. Senior Cody Buch is sizzling at the plate with a .474 average. Senior second baseman Jordan Lurie is hitting .400.

Ryan Dull and Dean Roland are both 2-0 on the hill this season.

The Bulldogs are back at Greenwood Field on Tuesday when they host Furman at 3 p.m.