University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Baseball Set to Host Coastal Carolina This Weekend
03.19.2015 | Baseball
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville baseball team stays at home this weekend for another Big South Conference series with league power Coastal Carolina invades Greenwood Field for a three-game set. Action begins Friday at 5 p.m., followed by a game on Saturday at 3 p.m. and Sunday's finale at 1 p.m.
All three games are scheduled to be broadcast on the Big South Network at this link.
The Bulldogs (10-10, 1-2 BSC) face a stiff challenge against the Chanticleers. CCU is playing good baseball coming into Asheville. The Chants (14-6, 0-0 BSC) have won five straight, including a 9-5 win over Clemson and 13-2 pounding of North Carolina last week.
Asheville coach Scott Friedholm is impressed with the Chanticleers.
“Coach (Gary) Gilmore and his staff have their team playing very well at the right time. They are coming in with a five-game win streak,” commented Friedholm. “It will be a great challenge for our team and we look forward to it. Our goal is to play 27 innings of focused baseball this weekend.”
The Bulldogs enter this weekend's action with wins in their last two games as they salvaged the final game of its series with Charleston Southern, 9-4 on Monday and then roared past Appalachian State, 11-5 on Tuesday.
Asheville is one of the most improved teams in the nation in 2015. The Bulldogs won just 13 games last year but are coming close to moving past the total in the second month of the year.
The Bulldogs win over ASU on Tuesday gave the Blue & White a 5-0 record in mid-week games this season.
Joe Zayatz leads the Dogs in hitting with a .382 average, followed by catcher Lucas Owens with a .349 mark. Joe Tietjen has a .338 average and Pete Guy is at .312. Hunter Bryant and Guy are tied for the team lead in RBIs with 12. Bryant tops the club in homers (3) and total bases (37).
Asheville is scheduled to start junior right-hander Corey Randall (1-3, 6.37 ERA) in Friday's opener. Randall threw a complete-game four hitter in a 2-1 victory over the Chanticleers last year at Greenwood Field.
Left-hander Lucas Clarke (2-2, 3.76 ERA) will start Saturday's game, followed by Joe Zayatz (1-4, 4.99 ERA) on Sunday.
BULLDOG NOTES
The Bulldogs are 7-3 in games decided by two runs or less and 5-1 in one-run games. Asheville has have won its last five one-run contests.
This is the earliest Asheville has reached 10 wins since the 2012 team reached it in 18 games.
The Bulldogs have not made an error in five straight games and seven of the last eight contests.
Nick Schanove is second in the Big South in saves with four.
Asheville is fourth in the Big South in hits with 174.
The Bulldogs and Chanticleers have split their last six meetings at Greenwood Field. Asheville won two-one-run games in 2011 to take the series, with CCU winning the first two games last season to win that series.
Joe Tietjen has reached base in 14 straight games and carries a nine-game hitting streak into this weekend's action.
Asheville has had at least 10 hits in five of the last six games.
The Bulldogs are tied for fourth nationally in double-plays turned with 26 (1.30 per game).
