It's always a great day to be a Tar Heel, but especially if you're a college baseball fan. Thanks to Saturday's 22-5 road domination of archival Duke, the Diamond Heels won their seventh-straight series.
On Tuesday night, UNC faces its toughest midweek test this season, hosting Coastal Carolina at 7 p.m. in a matchup of Top-10 teams. The Sun Belt-leading Chanticleers (30-13, 17-4) won their own weekend series, taking two of three from Texas State.
Second-ranked North Carolina is arguably the better team on paper, highlighted by its lights-out bullpen and deep lineup. Ninth-ranked Coastal is a solid team itself, with big hitters and a few solid pitchers, but the Diamond Heels will be their greatest test.
How can the Diamond Heels escape with another midweek victory? Keep reading below for our three keys to a UNC win.
On a team loaded with pitchers, North Carolina's strength lies in its bullpen. UNC has studs in its pitching rotation, most notably Jason DeCaro (7-2, 2.17 ERA, 50 Ks), but Coastal can pounce here.
The Diamond Heels won a 9-2 bullpen game last week against High Point, with Jackson Rose hurling 2 1/3 innings of 1-hit, 1-run ball to start things. Two weeks ago, Rose fired five frames of 1-run ball against UNC-Wilmington, striking out eight Seahawks.
Rose is North Carolina's likely starter on Tuesday, but whomever gets the call, he needs to keep frustrating the Chants.
If UNC can score 10 runs Tuesday night, chances of beating Coastal are pretty high. If the Diamond Heels can surpass 20 runs, they're almost guaranteed to win, barring a pitching no-show.
After an offensive bash like North Carolina's on Saturday, it's common for teams' bats to go cold. UNC scored just one run on Friday, but responded with 22 on Saturday.
The Chants have a solid pitching staff, plenty capable of limiting the Diamond Heels' hitting attack. North Carolina has to stay hot at the plate for a win.
UNC did virtually everything right against Duke over the weekend, besides securing a series sweep. Even in Friday's loss, the Diamond Heels recovered from a rough first inning, during which the Blue Devils scored three runs.
Across the first three innings of each game, North Carolina totaled four runs. The Diamond Heels scored in innings 3-7 on Saturday, leading to their mercy-rule victory.
If UNC keeps things in a pitchers' duel, scoring will come at a premium. A few early runs, though, further help North Carolina's case to pull away early for another big win.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC baseball: 3 keys to victory vs. Coastal Carolina