It was a shaky start for freshman right handed pitcher Benton Moss in Friday night’s 2-1 win at Boshamer Stadium, something he’s not terribly unfamiliar with.
He hadn’t earned a decision in either of his last two weekend starts, and in those two games combined he lasted only 7.1 innings. Friday night he gave the No. 7 North Carolina baseball team 7.2 innings.
“I knew that I hadn’t gone deep in a while,” Moss said. “I love watching Kent (Emanuel) pitch, I don’t know what it is but he always goes deep. I kind of want to model after him… because he goes to work when he’s out there. I felt like today I was able to hit my spots, especially with my fastball.”
The Hokies jumped on him in the first inning with a couple of hard hit balls. Leadoff man Alex Perez reached on an error by Tommy Coyle and after Moss plunked Mark Zagunis, Jake Atwell scored Perez with a single to left.
Moss settled down to win the game for the Tar Heels and finished his day having allowed just one run on four hits. He also retired eight batters with a strikeout and that’s the sixth time he’s had at least eight strikeouts this season.
Joe Mantiply, Virginia Tech’s left handed started, was strong from the outset. He was perfect through the first four innings but in the fifth, UNC broke through. Mantiply walked Cody Stubbs to give UNC their first baserunner on the night. Designated hitter Shell McCain turned on the first pitch he saw and sent it over the left field wall.
“That walk, Cody Stubbs drew that walk, and that kind of got me fired up,” McCain said. “Knowing that his perfect game was over, now it’s time to break his no-hitter. I was going up there to do whatever I could to get on base and break up his no-hitter.”
McCain’s blast was his first of the year and it gave UNC the 2-1 lead, but don’t ask McCain for the details.
“It was exciting,” he said. “I can’t even remember – I blacked out.”
