Zac Gallen tallied 12 strikeouts in a phenomenal starting pitching performance, leading the 11th ranked UNC baseball team to a series opening win over the rival Duke Blue Devils by a score of 8-1 Friday afternoon in Chapel Hill. The win improves UNC to 9-3 and 1-0 in the ACC. It also ends Duke’s nine-game winning streak, dropping them to 10-2 and 0-1 in conference play so far in 2015.
Predictions for this series called for the games to be low scoring and dominated by pitching. Those forecasts certainly held true in the early going for each team, but ultimately this day was all about one man.
Gallen (1-1) came out of the gate firing missiles, striking out 10 Blue Devil batters in just the first four innings, surpassing his career high of nine set last Sunday against Rhode Island. By the end of the game he had put together arguably the best performance by a UNC player all season long.
“I watched a lot of video on them yesterday,” Gallen says, “And I just saw that they were kind of cheating to go away (from the plate), so same thing as last weekend, I just tried to establish the inner half and then open up the whole strike zone.”
Tyler Ramirez, the Tar Heel right-fielder, tripled and had an RBI in the opener vs. Duke. (UNC Athletics)
He was moved up into the Friday start after Benton Moss was moved back in the rotation to Sunday for what Coach Mike Fox deemed “precautionary” reasons. Fox has been pleased with the maturity Gallen has shown this season, despite not yet having a clearly defined role.
“We started the season and he wasn’t one of our weekend guys. He was all last year as a freshman, but he didn’t pout,” Coach Fox says, “He wasn’t happy about it, but he didn’t pout. And then he pitched great out of the bullpen, then we throw him into the worst possible weather last weekend and he pitches great and got a little chip on his shoulder, and then for one reason or another we’re having to pitch him in our first ACC game.”
Although Duke was originally expected to start 6’6″ right-hander Michael Matuella, they opted instead to go with senior Andrew Istler (1-1), also a righty. Istler came into the game with an amazing 1.53 ERA in his three previous starts on the year, showing how, as he too brought his best stuff right from the get-go.
Three innings into the game neither team had a run, and each pitcher had allowed just one hit. Freshmen Evan Dougherty (Duke) and Brian Miller (UNC) each had a single, representing the only offense in the first third of the game.
Shortstop Wood Myers played well in the field and scored a run in the fourth. (UNC Athletics)
Carolina finally got the bats rolling off of Istler in the bottom of the fourth, after a pair of infield singles by Skye Bolt and Wood Myers with no outs. Landon Lassiter walked to load the bases, which then set up Tyler Ramirez, who drove in Bolt with a sacrifice fly to strike first blood.
The Tar Heels were also able to plate Myers before the end of the inning, giving Gallen a 2-0 lead to work with.
Similar events took place the next two times around for UNC. Skye Bolt’s second single of the day scored third baseman Logan Warmoth in the fifth, and Alex Raburn hit a sacrifice fly that scored Tyler Ramirez in the sixth, after Ramirez led off that inning with a triple.
Istler would finally come out of the game in the bottom of the seventh inning after UNC catcher Korey Dunbar singled with one out. Despite his stellar performance at the beginning of the game, he took the loss by finishing with five earned runs and eight hits in 6.1 innings of work.
As for the Tar Heels, their sophomore from Gibbsboro, New Jersey continued to dominate the Duke line-up as the game wore on. Gallen’s pitch count rose over 100 in the top of the seventh, but his effectiveness never suffered; finishing with seven innings and just one earned run, to go along with all those strikeouts. He also gave up just four hits.
Behind the plate, with the best seat in the house for Gallen’s amazing day, Dunbar offered up a catcher’s perspective on what allowed his man to pitch so well.
Skye Bolt went 3-5 with 2 RBI to lead the Carolina offense. (WRAL)
“Location, location, location,” says Dunbar, “I don’t think he didn’t hit a spot. When you’re commanding your fastball and you have somewhat of a feel on your off-speed, you’re gonna have a great day no matter what, especially him, he works his tail off.”
Trevor Kelley, who earned the win against Liberty on Monday, relieved Gallen in the the eighth after Duke’s first baseman, Jalen Phillips, tripled to lead off the inning. Phillips would score on a wild pitch by Kelley, but the run was credited to Gallen, the one mark on his outstanding day.
A stand-up RBI triple with two outs in the bottom of the eighth by Dunbar, and another RBI single from Bolt, put the Tar Heels on the board for the fifth consecutive inning. These plays led to a three-run inning that put the lead out of reach, at 8-1, heading into Duke’s final at-bats.
Staying on to close it in the ninth was Kelley. The senior sat down the Duke lineup without facing any significant threats to wrap up the Tar Heels’ first win over Duke since 2013.
Up Next:
If you like fastballs, then Saturday’s pitching matchup is for you. Carolina will send freshman JB Bukauskas and his 97 mph heater to face-off with the much-hyped junior, Matuella, who also possesses a mid-to-high 90’s fastball in his devastating repertoire. Matuella has also not allowed an earned run yet this season in seven innings of work.
The game is set to begin at 2 P.M. and will be broadcast on WCHL.
Game Notes:
- Skye Bolt (hitting just .206 heading into Friday) started in center-field for UNC after coming off the bench on Wednesday against VCU and sitting out against Liberty. He played much better, going 3-5 with two RBI.
- Duke had a runner on second base in three of the first four innings, failing to score each time.
- Gallen’s ERA drops to 1.69 in 15 innings on the season.
- The Blue Devils failed to get a hit all game with a runner on base.
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