North Carolina
UNC Starting Pitcher and Lineup for Regional Game Against Tennessee
Coming off two impressive wins over VCU and East Carolina in the Chapel Hill Regional, the North Carolina Tar Heels head into Sunday’s matchup against Tennessee with significant momentum.
With all that being said, here is who will start on the mound for the Tar Heels on Sunday, with a lineup projection against the Volunteers in the third and final game of the regional round of the tournament.
Starting Pitcher Against Tennessee
Earlier this week, head coach Scott Forbes announced Ryan Lynch and Jason DeCaro would serve as the starters for the Tar Heels’ opening two games in the Chapel Hill Regional. With Caden Glauber contributing 4.1 innings on Saturday, compiling eight strikeouts while giving up three hits and two runs, Glauber could be less likely to start. However, I expect the true freshman to sprinkle in a few innings on Sunday against Tennessee.
- “Most of the time it becomes, ‘Okay, what do we feel like is the better matchup’ even though we feel like they match up well against anybody, and they [aren’t going to] be scared of anybody,” Forbes said. “That’s why we decided to go Lynch game one against VCU, and DeCaro will go game two against East Carolina or Tennessee.”
- “I feel like we have multiple aces,” Forbes said. “I feel like Jason DeCaro and Ryan Lynch are both Friday night guys.”
Projected Starting Lineup
Through the first two games of the regional round of the tournament, the Tar Heels are averaging 7.5 runs and 11 hits per outing. Based on what Forbes has rolled out in the opening games against VCU and East Carolina, I expect North Carolina’s batting lineup to look very similar, if not exactly the same.
While the Tar Heels coasted to victory over VCU and faced no adversity, jumping out to a 3-0 lead after the first inning en route to an 8-0 win. That was not the case on Saturday night, as the start of the game was a reciprocated experience for North Carolina, which fell behind 3-0 heading into the fourth inning.
“This team’s mature, they know we’ve played good teams all year, good midweek teams, and I’ve told them it’s about how we play, it’s not about the opponent,” Forbes said. “All of our focus has been on us, number one.”
With all that said, the Tar Heels’ projected batting lineup, in order, is Jake Schaffner, Gavin Gallaher, Owen Hull, Macon Winslow, Cooper Nicholson, Tyler Howe, Colin Hynek, Erik Paulsen, and Rom Kellis V.
Follow