COLLEGE BASEBALL: Heels need 2 wins to reach Omaha

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on June 7, 2018 5:51 AM

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By RUDY COGGINS

rcoggins@newsargus.com

CHAPEL HILL -- A season of redemption didn't go quite as planned...at first.

In early March, North Carolina sat at .500 and dealt with unexpected injuries to key players.

The Tar Heels dropped an Atlantic Coast Conference series at Louisville, and fell to in-state rival Gardner-Webb four days later.

"Once we lost to Gardner-Webb, we all came together and said 'we need to get our stuff together, start playing as a team,'" sophomore infielder Ashton McGee said.

"I think that's when everything started to roll. We used that as motivation. If we want to even make the regional this year we better step up."

UNC rolled, indeed.

The Tar Heels defeated 31 of their next 41 opponents, seized the ACC Coastal Division title and earned a No. 6 national seed for the postseason. They continued their run with a three-game sweep in the Chapel Hill Regional this past weekend.

Next is a date with No. 11 national seed Stetson. The best-of-three super regional begins at noon Friday in Boshamer Stadium. The survivor moves on to college baseball's mecca -- Omaha.

Carolina hasn't been since 2013.

"Right now, we're just trying to play the best we can," McGee said. "Playing good defense and pitching well is where it kind of starts. We feel good as a team and we want to keep it going."

Stetson's calling card is pitching.

Right-hander Logan Gilbert was picked 14th overall by the Seattle Mariners in the MLB First-Year Player Draft on Monday. Bullpen mate Brooks Wilson, another right-hander, got selected by the Atlanta Braves in the seventh round Tuesday.

Gilbert is 10-1 with a 2.52 earned run average. He's filed 143 strikeouts in 100 innings on the bump. Wilson is equally impressive -- a 6-0 worksheet, 2.13 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 55 innings.

The Hatters' third weekend guy, Jack Perkins, is 10-2 with a 2.57 ERA in 94.3 innings.

McGee saw all three while playing with Chatham Anglers of the Cape Cod League this past summer.

"When the [regional] matchups came out, I knew if we both won it would be a really good series," McGee said. "They're going to be some of the best pitchers we've seen all year, honestly. We're just going to have to score some runs...hold their offense [down].

"There will probably be low-scoring games. We just have to grind."

The last five games have been a chore for McGee.

The sweet-hitting righty is just 2-for-17 with a walk and three runs scored. A consensus All-American as a freshman, he's determined to help UNC punch its ticket to Omaha for the fifth time overall since 2006.

"I've just had some bad at-bats," McGee said. "I felt like I was seeing everything well, but sometimes you just have to tip your cap to the pitcher. I need to be more aggressive.

"As soon as I see a strike, try to go after it and put a good swing on it and hopefully the hits will start falling again."