While their men's basketball teams prepare for a Saturday night showdown in Cameron, Duke and North Carolina will also face off on the diamond this weekend.
The Blue Devils (12-0) and second-ranked Tar Heels (8-1) will open the ACC season with a three-game series, starting today at 3 p.m. at Jack Coombs Field.
This rivalry hasn't been quite as competitive as the one on the hardwood, with the Tar Heels winning 14 of the last 15 in Durham and 28 of 32 overall against their Tobacco Road rivals.
Duke was able to steal one in Chapel Hill a season ago, however, and is trying to build on the momentum of a perfect start to the season. It's been 12 up, 12 down for the Blue Devils in the non-conference slate, and the squad will look to continue that streak into conference play.
"We're just really excited," head coach Sean McNally said. "We're excited to come through the non-conference part of this the way we have and just excited to play North Carolina. It's a great program, and Friday can't get here soon enough."
Duke is coming off its most exciting win of the season, as Gabriel Saade's two-out, two-run single in the bottom of the ninth lifted the Blue Devils past Valparaiso, 5-4.
"We've been working very hard, and everything has been preparation to starting the ACCs and being one of the top contenders in the conference this year. And of course, [Wednesday] was a must win for us because of momentum," Saade said. "We're going to battle, we're going to take two-out-of-three from UNC.There's no reason why we shouldn't."
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