Friday, March 8
Raleigh, NC
12 PM
Pitt
at
NC State
Panthers Travel to Raleigh for ACC Opener at No. 20 NC State
3/7/2019 4:36:00 PM | Baseball
Pitt Heads to NC State for First Time Since 2015 Season
RALEIGH, N.C. – The University of Pittsburgh baseball team opens its ever-challenging ACC slate this weekend, traveling to No. 20 NC State for a three-game series with the undefeated Wolfpack at Doak Field at Dail Park in Raleigh, N.C.
The Panthers and Wolfpack will open the series Friday at 3 p.m., returning to the field Saturday at 2 p.m. before the conclusion of the series Sunday at 1 p.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW
LEADING OFF
SCOUTING NC STATE
SERIES WITH NC STATE
WHO'S STREAKING
PITT ON MARCH 8
PITT ON MARCH 9
PITT ON MARCH 10
HAMMER TIME
PERRY PACING PANTHERS
CAPPAS RETURNS TO THE MOUND
SMITH NAMED TO STOPPER WATCHLIST
MALVERN CONNECTION
BRING IN BELL
SUMMER CATCH
ALL SIGNS POINT WEST
UP NEXT
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The Panthers and Wolfpack will open the series Friday at 3 p.m., returning to the field Saturday at 2 p.m. before the conclusion of the series Sunday at 1 p.m.
HOW TO FOLLOW
- All three games can be seen live on the ACC Network Extra via WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app.
- Live stats will be available here.
- Fans can follow @Pitt_BASE on Twitter and Instagram.
LEADING OFF
- Pitt (6-4, 0-0 ACC) gets ACC play underway, traveling to Raleigh, N.C., to face No. 20 NC State, one of the nation's four remaining unbeaten teams. The Panthers traveled back to Kissimmee, Fla., for the Russmatt Central Florida Invitational last weekend, going 3-1 with wins over Hofstra, Saint Peter's and Butler.
- The Panthers check in as the league's eighth best offensive squad, holding a .271 team average, led by a trio of hitters over the .300 mark. Senior outfielder Connor Perry (.406) leads the team and ranks sixth in the ACC in average. He owns a team-best .750 slugging percentage and a .525 on base mark with three doubles, one triple and two homers. Junior Nico Popa (.368) and senior Cole MacLaren (.351) have each tallied six RBI and four doubles, with Popa adding a pair of triples.
- Junior transfer Christian Camacho will get the call on Friday, with junior ace Dan Hammer taking the hill on Saturday. Sunday's starter is yet to be announced. Camacho (1-1) owns a 4.63 ERA, having allowed eight runs (six earned) off 13 hits and five walks, striking out 14. He has been solid in his last three appearances (two starts), not letting up an earned run, surrendering just five hits and two walks, whiffing 11 and holding opponents to a .185 average. Hammer has been magical to open the season, ranking in the tops of the ACC and the nation in multiple categories. The righty owns a mark of 2-0 in three starts, with a 1.76 ERA, having allowed four runs (three earned) off 11 hits and two walks, striking out 29 to rank second in the ACC.
SCOUTING NC STATE
- No. 20 NC State (12-0, 0-0 ACC) is off to its best start in program history and is one of only four undefeated teams remaining in the nation. The Wolfpack enters the weekend after a thrilling 11-10, extra-inning victory over NC Central Wednesday afternoon.
- The Wolfpack are hitting .277 as a team, led by four hitters over the .325 mark. Senior Evan Edwards (.373) leads the pack with a .745 slugging percentage, 19 hits, and four home runs, bringing in 16 RBI. Tyler McDonough (.354), Will Wilson (.353) and Vojtech Mensik (.333) round out power hitters of the league's fifth-best hitting team.
- NC State will throw righty Jason Parker on Friday before giving the bump to left-hander Canaan Silver. Sunday's starter has yet to be determined. The start will be the fourth of the season for Parker, who owns a mark of 2-0 with a 1.26 ERA. He's allowed four runs (two earned) off 11 hits and three walks, fanning 12 in 14.1 innings. Silver has made three starts on the year, competing to a record of 1-0 with a 2.70 ERA. He's surrendered four runs off 11 hits and five walks, striking out 10.
SERIES WITH NC STATE
- NC State holds a 6-1 record over the Panthers all-time in a series dating back to the 1941 season, having won the last six meetings.
- The Wolfpack owns a 6-0 advantage all-time over the Panthers in ACC play.
- The last meeting between the two squads came in the 2017 season, as NC State swept the Panthers at Charles L. Cost Field.
- This will be the first time the Panthers have faced NC State in Raleigh since the 2015 campaign.
WHO'S STREAKING
- Junior Nico Popa and sophomore Ron Washington Jr. own the team's longest active hit streak, sitting at eight games. Both Connor Perry and Cole MacLaren own five-game marks, while freshman Sky Duff sits at three.
- MacLaren's 10-game reached base streak is the longest active mark on the team, with Washington Jr. and Popa sitting at eight and Perry at five.
PITT ON MARCH 8
- The Panthers own a mark of 16-11 all-time in games played on March 8.
- Pitt owns a mark of 0-3 all-time in ACC games played on March 8.
PITT ON MARCH 9
- The Panthers own a mark of 19-6 all-time in games played on March 9.
- Pitt owns a mark of 1-1 all-time in ACC games played on March 9.
PITT ON MARCH 10
- The Panthers own a mark of 12-10 all-time in games played on March 10.
- Pitt owns a mark of 1-2 all-time in games played on March 10.
HAMMER TIME
- Junior Dan Hammer has gotten out to a strong start as the ace of the Panther rotation, racking up impressive numbers in his first three starts of the season.
- In three outings, Hammer has amassed 29 strikeouts, pacing the Panther staff, ranking second in the ACC and 10th in the nation.
- His 29 Ks in 15.1 innings of work, calculates a 17.02 strikeout per nine inning mark, which leads the ACC and ranks fourth the country.
- Even more impressive, the Philadelphia native has surrendered just two walks on the season, ranking 15th in the nation with a 14.50 strikeout to walk ratio and 79th in the country with a 1.17 walks per nine innings mark.
PERRY PACING PANTHERS
- Senior Connor Perry has earned a role in the starting lineup and is pacing the Panther offense in a majority of offensive categories.
- The outfielder is hitting a team-best .406, ranking sixth in the ACC and 109th in the nation. He owns a team-leading .750 slugging percentage and .525 on base mark. The lefty bat has collected three doubles and two homers, drawing eight walks and is a perfect two-of-two in stolen base attempts.
- Perry has also been solid defensively, having yet to commit an error and adding 18 putouts as the anchor in center field.
CAPPAS RETURNS TO THE MOUND
- Sophomore two-way player Chris Cappas has made his return to the mound in the early stages of the 2019 season, after limited pitching in his rookie campaign.
- Also seeing time in the outfield, Cappas was a reliable offensive threat for the Panthers in his freshman season, earning All-Tournament honors at the 2018 ACC Baseball Championship after hitting .545 with three extra base hits and two RBI with a .909 slugging percentage and .583 on base mark in the tournament.
- The Lynbrook, N.Y., native has made three appearances for the Panthers' pitching staff in his sophomore season, including two starts. He's allowed three earned runs and struck out six in 6.1 innings of work.
SMITH NAMED TO STOPPER WATCHLIST
- Sophomore reliever Chase Smith was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watchlist, an award annually given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball.
- The Georgia native made 22 appearances as a true freshman, third most on the team. He held opponents to just a .191 average, competing to a record of 1-1 with one save and a 3.16 ERA.
- Smith is one of five ACC pitchers to garner the recognition and marks the second straight season in which a Pitt reliever has earned the preseason distinction (Yasin Chentouf).
MALVERN CONNECTION
- Freshman pitchers Billy Corcoran and Brady Devereux are no strangers to one another, as the duo comes to Pitt after stellar careers at Malvern Prep in Malvern, Pa.
- The pair won three state championships at Malvern, collecting the state title in 2015, 2016 and 2018.
- Both nationally touted recruits and highly sought after Pennsylvania player, both ranked in the top five amongst right handed pitchers and in the top 20 in the state of Pennsylvania by Perfect Game.
BRING IN BELL
- Mike Bell is in his first season as head coach at Pitt after a seven-year stint as the associate head coach for ACC powerhouse Florida State. He brings 14 years of Division I coaching experience to the program and has coached 47 MLB draft picks, including 2006's No. 1 overall pick Luke Hochevar.
- In 2012, he was named the Perfect Game Assistant Coach of the Year and before the 2017 season, was named the No. 13 recruiter in the country by D1Baseball.com. In the last 13 years, Bell has also helped lead three teams to four College World Series appearances - Tennessee (2005), Oklahoma (2010), and Florida State (2012 & 2017). In his time at Florida State, the program won three ACC titles in 2015, 2017, and 2018 and his pitchers have recorded 500 or more strikeouts.
SUMMER CATCH
- Junior pitcher Dan Hammer had a summer to remember in the prestigious Cape Cod League, earning national recognition in his second stint with the Chatham Anglers. The hard-throwing righty was the East Division's starting pitcher in the 2018 Cape Cod League All-Star game and put up impressive numbers splitting time between the bullpen and the starting rotation.
- The Panthers' righty was one of the best in the nation's top collegiate summer league, posting a 2-0 record and a 2.16 ERA in 25.0 innings for the Anglers, striking out 20 in the process.
- The Chatham Anglers are no stranger to Pitt pitchers, having hosted 2016 First Round Draft pick T.J. Zeuch, as well as 2017 19th round pick Isaac Mattson and 2018 Sixth Round pick RJ Freure.
ALL SIGNS POINT WEST
- Redshirt junior pitcher Derek West had a solid season in the Cape Cod League, pitching with the league champion Wareham Gatemen. After joining the Gatemen in July, West made four appearances, including two starts, competing to a 1.10 ERA in 16.1 innings. He allowed just two runs off eight hits and six walks, striking out 15 and holding opponents to a .143 average.
UP NEXT
- The Panthers make their Cost Field debut, hosting Penn State Tuesday and Youngstown State Wednesday.
- Pitt welcomes Virginia Tech the following weekend, as ACC Play gets underway in Pittsburgh March 15-17.
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