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VIRGINIA CAVALIERS (23-10-1, 9-6)
Probable Starting Rotation
Fri.
– RHP Branden Kline (5-2, 3.19 ERA)
Sat. – LHP Scott Silverstein (2-3, 2.62 ERA)
Sun. – RHP Artie Lewicki (1-1, 4.41 ERA)

NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS (24-9, 9-6)
Probable Starting Rotation
Fri.
– LHP Kent Emanuel (5-2, 1.93 ERA)
Sat. – RHP Chris Munnelly (2-0, 2.92 ERA)
Sun. – RHP Benton Moss (2-2, 1.85 ERA)

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The No. 23 Virginia baseball team returns to ACC play this weekend for a three-game series against No. 8 North Carolina at Davenport Field. The series commences at 6 p.m. Friday. Game 2 is set for 4 p.m. Saturday, with the finale scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday.

The Cavaliers (23-10-1) and Tar Heels (24-9) currently are tied for second place in the ACC Coastal Division standings with identical 9-6 records. Miami leads the division with an 11-5 mark.

Radio/Video Coverage
Live video and audio for all three games will be available on VirginiaSports.com (subscription required). Live GameTracker links also can be found at VirginiaSports.com.

The Friday game will air in the Charlottesville area on WVAX 1450-AM. The Saturday contest will air across the Virginia Sports Radio Network (check local listings), including WINA 1070-AM in Charlottesville. WINA also has coverage of the Sunday game.

Friday Parking
Free public parking for the baseball and men’s lacrosse games on Friday is available in the University Hall, John Paul Jones Arena, and McCue parking lots and Emmet/Ivy Garage.

Because of parking in these lots by University employees, there is likely to be limited parking in these lots through the end of the workday.

Traffic is expected to be heavy in the areas adjacent to University Hall and John Paul Jones Arena as University employees exit the parking lots and fans arrive for the baseball and men’s lacrosse games. Additional personnel will be in place to help manage egress out of and ingress into the parking lots. Fans are encouraged to allow extra time to arrive in advance of the start of these games.

Noting The Series
Winners of 12 of their last 14 games, the Cavaliers enter the series on a five-game winning streak and a 15-game home winning streak. Virginia scored 16 unanswered runs to climb out of an early four-run hole and defeat George Washington, 16-4, Wednesday evening at Davenport Field. GW scored four runs in the first inning, but UVa scored runs in each of the first four innings, capped by a nine-run fourth inning, to bounce back and roll to the win.

Jared King (Sr., Radford, Va.) ranks seventh in the ACC in batting (.368), while Stephen Bruno (Jr., Audubon, N.J.) stands 13th in the conference with a .336 average. UVa leads the ACC in batting (.316) and fielding (.976). The Cavaliers rank sixth in the ACC in ERA (3.28).

North Carolina suffered its first ACC series loss of the season last weekend when it was swept at Miami. Colin Moran leads the team with a .389 batting average, although he has been sidelined of late with an injury. Tom Zengel is second on the team with a .325 average, while Jacob Stallings is batting .310.

The Tar Heels have a deep pitching staff which ranks second in the ACC with a 2.70 team ERA. UNC is batting .276 as a team (eighth in the ACC), while the Tar Heels own a .966 fielding percentage (ninth in the ACC).

North Carolina holds a 172-98-4 edge in its all-time series with Virginia. UNC swept the Cavaliers last year in Chapel Hill, but UVa rebounded the next weekend to defeat the Tar Heels, 3-2, in the ACC tournament.

Over the past five seasons, Virginia holds a 10-9 edge in the series. Eleven of the last 14 games have been decided by three runs or fewer, including three one-run games last year.

Pitching has been the focal point of the recent Virginia-UNC series. In the teams’ 11 meetings since 2009, there has been just one instance where a team scored more than six runs in a game: UVa scored 11 runs in the 2009 ACC Tournament.

UVa caps off its nine-game homestand at 6 p.m. Tuesday when it plays host to Richmond. The Cavaliers travel to Duke next weekend for a three-game ACC series at Durham Bulls Athletic Park.

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