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Some postscripts from a magical two weeks of Carolina baseball.
The attendance at Boshamer Stadium grew for every game of the NCAA Regional and Super Regional. Capacity at The Bosh is listed at 4,100. Each game the Diamond Heels played was a sellout. The Saturday night win over West Virginia that sent them back to the College World Series was announced at 4,491, a new record for the stadium.
I suspect that after six innings, ticket takers go watch the game and fire marshals go home. By the dramatic finish of almost every game, the standing roomers were about four deep along both baselines, like the bar at Four Corners during hoop season. The overages were due to standing-room-only tickets that sold for $25.
There was no official number at how many of those could be – or were – sold, just that the line began to form six-to-eight hours before the first pitch and extended past Avery Dorm almost to the entrance of Karen Shelton Stadium, a notable vantage point itself.
Along with fans who watched through the screen outside of the right field wall, the most extra attendees were inside the field hockey facility, packed onto the top row of the north side stands, watching over the right field fence, where a half-dozen home run balls came flying at them over the fortnight.
No question that Boshamer, which opened in 1972, has been turned into one of the most beautiful and functional college baseball stadiums in the country. From the days when coaches had to paint the baselines and batters box before games, UNC now has a grounds crew that looked close to a dozen, making sure the field is first-pitch perfect.
If you got there an hour or so before the game, you saw the stadium and field come to life. I especially liked watching left-handed assistant coach Jason Howell throw batting practice from behind a screen about 30 feet from home plate to help batters stay on top of the 60-foot bullets during the game. Howell threw strike after strike, which also maximized the time the players had to take their swings.
The packed park also sparked ideas of how to get more seats (without selling tickets to Shelton Stadium). One wag suggested putting bleachers on top of the building behind the left field fence or just erecting stands all around from foul pole to foul pole. Of course, that would mean taking down some trees, always a hot button at UNC.
TV and radio now tell us how far Vance Honeycutt’s home runs travel, the MPH of balls leaving the bat, the launch angle (whatever that is) and how many pitches for each hurler and their speed, both also on the digital scoreboard.
Those lucky enough to be in Omaha will see more of college baseball in its Sunday best for every game. Here’s to the Diamond Heels bringing home the hardware and the bacon.
Featured image via UNC Baseball on Twitter
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
The Bosh is certainly one of the most beautiful baseball stadiums in the country. This past summer I took a grandson to one of the “camps” and for the first time came into a nearly empty stadium. It was beautiful even when empty.