The Tobacco Road Rivalry is known for its legendary contests on the basketball court, but this weekend Duke and North Carolina will take their battles to the baseball diamond as well.
The Blue Devils will make the eight-mile trek to Chapel Hill this weekend for a three-game series with the No. 16 Tar Heels to begin ACC play. The opener is slated for 3 p.m. Friday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium, with single games at 2 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday to wrap up the series.
Duke heads into conference play riding a nine-game winning streak and playing solid baseball in all three phases of the game. The Blue Devils have pulled out three one-run wins in their last four games—including a pair of walk-off victories—and are expecting a few more close games against an excellent North Carolina squad that Duke swept last season for the first time in 20 years.
“The guys at [North] Carolina would tell you the same thing. Everybody enjoys the series, everybody likes getting up for that series,” head coach Chris Pollard said. “It’s a great rivalry—they’re a very storied program, they have a terrific stadium. So it won’t be an issue for our guys to be up for the weekend. And they’ve got a great club, so it’s a tremendous challenge that we relish.”
The Blue Devils (10-1) have been a feast-or-famine squad at the plate during this young season—erupting for double-digit runs three times but also posting three runs or less in four of their last six contests. The offense will have its hands full against a powerful North Carolina pitching staff anchored by upperclassmen Benton Moss and Trent Thornton.
Moss is the unquestioned ace for the Tar Heels (8-3), having turned down a 15th round selection from the San Francisco Giants in the 2014 MLB draft to return for one final year in Chapel Hill. The 6-foot-2 senior has shown an increase in velocity this spring, boasting a fastball that now sits in the low-to-mid 90s to complement his off-speed repertoire. Moss is off to an impressive start to begin the year, posting a 2.30 ERA through his first three starts with an astounding 26 strikeouts in 15.2 innings pitched.
Thornton has seen his role change from being one of the team’s core starters as a sophomore a year ago to now a jack-of-all trades character as a junior this season. The southpaw has made two starts and four relief appearances thus far, becoming the Tar Heels’ go-to reliever. Thornton notched his third save of the season Monday with a five-out effort in North Carolina’s 6-4 win against Liberty, and he is a weapon that head coach Mike Fox will have at his disposal for all three games this weekend.
“Against Benton [Moss], you’ve got to be able to hit the fastball. His fastball velocity is up this year. He’s always been a guy that’s pitched 89-91, but now he’s up in the low-to-mid 90s, and he’s been up as high as 96 this spring,” Pollard said. “If you start taking a lot of fastballs against Benton Moss early in the count, you’re going to see a lot of breaking balls and you’re going to be trying to hit a lot of breaking balls. We have to do a good job of trying to be fastball-ready. They’ve got a great staff, they’ve got a deep staff. They run a lot of really good guys out of the bullpen, so this will be a tremendous challenge for our hitters.”
Although the Tar Heels will trot out some electric arms to the mound this weekend, the Blue Devils are no slouch themselves when it comes to their pitching staff. The reason Duke has been able to win so many close games despite inconsistent scoring has been because of a deep staff that has consistently stymied opponents, posting a sparkling 1.76 team ERA through the season’s first 11 games.
With Moss likely to throw the series opener Friday afternoon, the Blue Devils will counter with senior Andrew Istler. Teams usually give their aces the starting nod for series openers, but Pollard cited Istler’s six-inning, three-run outing in a Friday night game against Florida State last season as proof that the Wellington, Fla., native is more than capable of going toe-to-toe with an opposing team’s best guy.
Michael Matuella—the ace of the Duke staff—will get the ball Saturday in a limited role. Matuella is still recovering from a forearm injury and looking to build up his stamina, and Pollard said the powerful right-hander will be on a restrictive pitch count that should allow him to throw just a few innings. Sophomore Bailey Clark—who has taken a huge step forward in his sophomore season by yielding just three earned runs in 20 innings across three starts this year—will be on the bump for Sunday’s matinee contest.
With 11 games under their belt and the meat of their schedule about to start, the Blue Devils know it’s time to turn the page and compete in the ACC—a conference home to some of the top baseball programs in the country. Looking back on the nonconference slate, Pollard was impressed with how his team handled a variety of adverse situations, and believes that will bode well for them against the rival Tar Heels.
“They’ve showed me a lot on the intangible side of things. They’ve showed me a lot of poise, a lot of composure and a great ability to stay focused regardless of the circumstances,” Pollard said. “We’ve been on the road, we’ve played at home, we’ve been in good weather, we’ve played in a lot of lousy weather, we’ve played in some close ballgames and we’ve played in some blowouts, and I think in every aspect we’ve done an exceptional job of staying in the moment and that’s obviously a big hallmark for us.”
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