March 8, 2012

Game Notes (PDF)

No. 20 Maryland (11-1) at Wake Forest (11-4)

Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday (6 p.m): RHP Brady Kirkpatrick (1-0, 0.44) vs. LHP Tim Cooney (2-1, 1.31)
Saturday (4 p.m.): RHP David Carroll (2-0, 2.12) vs. RHP Justin Van Grouw (1-1, 4.42)
Sunday (1 p.m.): RHP Brett Harman (2-0, 0.00) vs. LHP Brian Holmes (3-0, 0.45)

Storyline...
• Maryland heads into the opening weekend of Atlantic Coast Conference play riding a 10-game winning streak and at 11-1 is off to its best start in 45 years. The only time Maryland has had a better start since 1924 was when it opened the 1967 season 12-1. The Terps are ranked nationally in four of the five major polls, checking in at No. 20 in the Perfect Game USA Top 50, No. 21 in the Collegiate Baseball News Top 30, No. 25 in the Baseball America Top 25 and No. 30 in the NCBWA Top 30.

• The Terrapin pitching staff has led the way in the early going, accumulating a 0.96 ERA that is the best in NCAA Division I. During the 10-game winning streak, Maryland has surrendered just nine runs, including three shutouts. In 2011, the Terps had just four shutouts all season. Last weekend against Manhattan, the starting rotation of Brady Kirkpatrick, David Carroll and Brett Harman combined to pitch 22 innings and allow just one earned run on eight hits. The bullpen, meanwhile, has not allowed a run since the season-opening series at No. 14 UCLA, a span of 21 1/3 innings. Opponents have just 10 hits against the `pen in that span.

• Maryland's defense has also been a key part of the equation, having committed just 11 errors for a .975 fielding percentage that ranks third in the ACC. Alfredo Rodriguez is the only shortstop in the ACC that has yet to commit an error, and the senior has a team-high 32 assists.

• The Terps have started to pick it up offensively of late, hitting .317 as a team over the last five games. 1B Tim Kiene continues to lead the team with a .382 batting average, though he has missed the last three games. RF Jordan Hagel (.326), 2B Kyle Convissar (.316) and 3B K.J. Hockaday (.310) are all batting above .300 as well.

Follow the Terps • Video of all three games will be streamed online at WakeForestSports.com, and live stats are available at umterps.com. Also follow @umterpsbaseball on Twitter for updates.

Scouting Wake Forest...
• The Demon Deacons enter the weekend riding a 10-game winning streak, identical to Maryland's. They're 11-4 overall and 10-1 at home.

• Wake has a formidable starting rotation in lefties Tim Cooney and Brian Holmes and right-hander Justin Van Grouw. Cooney, a second-team All-ACC selection last year, earned ACC Pitcher of the Week honors on Feb. 27 after striking out 10 in seven innings of work against Cincinnati. Holmes also earned POW honors after no-hitting Marshall last Sunday.

• As a team Wake Forest is hitting .295 and boasts six players in its starting lineup hitting better than .300. Carlos Lopez leads the team and ranks 13th in the ACC with a .389 batting average, along with four home runs and seven doubles, also team bests. A first baseman, Lopez leads the league with 25 RBIs. Series history: Maryland trails the all-time series with Wake Forest, 55-94-1, with the Demon Deacons on a five-game winning streak.

Starting Pitching Sets the Tone...
• Maryland heads into the weekend leading the nation with a 0.96 team ERA. They are the only team in the country with an ERA under 1.00.

• The starting rotation of Brady Kirkpatrick, David Carroll and Brett Harman has a combined 5-0 record and a 0.82 ERA. Additionally, all three rank in the top-18 in the ACC in ERA. Harman (0.00) is t-1st, Kirkpatrick (0.44) is 4th and Carroll (2.12) is t-18th.

• Kirkpatrick has excelled in his role as the Friday-night starter, going deeper into the game in each start. After going 5 1/3 innings while allowing just one unearned run in the season-opening win at No. 14 UCLA, Kirkpatrick went 7 1/3 shutout innings against Western Carolina on 2/26, striking out five and surrendering just four hits. Last weekend against Manhattan, Kirkpatrick went 8 innings and allowed just one earned run on three hits.

• Carroll bounced back from a tough first start of the year (3 IP, 4 R at UCLA) to give two straight dominant performances. The 6-foot-8 senior matched a career high with eight strikeouts two weeknds ago against Purdue (2/26), spreading out four hits in 7 innings while surrendering one unearned run. He held the Boilermakers, who came in with a .343 batting average, to a .148 clip. Last weekend, he pitched a complete game (7 innings) two-hitter, striking out six and allowing one unearned run.

• Harman has been steady too, making his return after redshirting last season due to Tommy John surgery. The fifth-year senior is one of just five pitchers in the nation that has logged at least 17 innings without allowing an earned run. After going 5.0 innings in each of his first two starts, Harman turned in seven innings against Manhattan last weekend, allowing just three hits while striking out five and not issuing a walk.

Bullpen Looking Sharp...
• Led by Jimmy Reed, Michael Boyden, Korey Wacker and Charlie Haslup, the Maryland bullpen has been close to perfect. It hasn't allowed a run since the season-opening series at UCLA, a span of 21 1/3 innings.

• Reed is a perfect 5-for-5 on save chances which leads the league. In 8 1/3 innings, the lefty has allowed just three hits (.115 opponent b/avg) and struck out 10 without issuing a walk or allowing a run.

• Boyden has pitched 5 2/3 innings in relief and went 5 innings in a start against Delaware on Tuesday. He hasn't allowed a run yet this season and has surrendered just two hits (.063 opponent b/avg).

• Wacker is second on the team with five appearances and pitched in both of Maryland's mid-week games this week. He's tied for the team-lead in relief innings pitched with Reed (8 1/3) and has also yet to surrender a run.

• After allowing two runs in his season-debut at UCLA (2/18), Haslup has made three appearances spanning four innings without allowing a run. He has struck out four, walked one and allowed three hits in that time.

• In 33 total innings of work, Maryland's bullpen ERA is 0.82.

What To Watch For This Weekend...
• Maryland's pitching staff enters the weekend with a 0.96 ERA, holding opponents to a .176 batting average. Wake Forest is hitting .295 as a team.

• With two more strikeouts, Brett Harman can crack Maryland's career top-10. The senior currently has 198, just behind Joe Hart (1997-2000), who sits in 10th place with 200.

• Both teams enter the weekend on 10-game winning streaks - a mark that is best in the ACC.

• Wake Forest leads the ACC with 24 stolen bases. Maryland has just nine, but led the ACC with 215 in 2010-11.

• Combined, the six starting pitchers this weekend have an ERA of 1.43.

Terps Debut In National Rankings...
• The Terps made their debut in two national rankings on 2/27, checking in at No. 20 in the Perfect Game USA Top 50, and No. 27 in the Collegiate Baseball News Top 30. It's the program's first appearance in the Perfect Game poll and its first inclusion since at least 1980 in the Collegiate Baseball News poll. Maryland then made its first appearance in the 32-year history of the Baseball America poll on 3/5, checking in at No. 25.

Notes on the Offense...
• Tim Kiene leads the team with a .382 batting average and has hit safely in eight of the nine games he's played in.

• Kyle Convissar recorded the first four-hit game by a Terrapin in 21 months when he went 4-for-5 against Purdue (2/25). The sophomore is third on the team with a .316 batting average.

• Kiene and Michael Montville hit back-to-back home runs in the 11-1 win over Purdue (2/25). The last time Maryland had done that was 2/27/10 (Adam Kolarek and Brandon Padula).

• Maryland cranked out a season-high 15 hits against the Boilermakers, with four Terps achieving multiple hits: Convissar had four; Kiene and Charlie White had three apiece; and Jordan Hagel had two.

• Hagel gave Maryland it's second four-hit game of the season when he went 4-for-5 with three runs and three RBIs in the second game of a doubleheader against Manhattan on 3/3.

Upcoming...
• Maryland returns home following the weekend series with Wake Forest to play a pair of games with St. Peter's. The Terps then open their home ACC schedule when North Carolina visits next weekend, then cap the six-game homestand as George Washington visits Bob "Turtle" Smith Stadium on Tuesday, March 20 at 6 p.m.