UNC's bats come to life in 15-4 thrashing over Stony Brook in series finale

After sweeping Stony Brook to extend its five-game winning streak, the North Carolina baseball team has promising hopes for some of its key players heading into an integral part of the season.

Despite the Seawolves' winless record coming into play, the Tar Heels struggled to pull out a gritty win in 11 innings in the opener on Friday. After UNC took a 7-1 lead in the following game, Stony Brook chipped away to close the gap in what ended up being a narrow two-run win for UNC.

But following a shaky two-game start to the series, North Carolina responded emphatically on Sunday with an impressive 15-4 win that was led by its cast of usual stars along with some developing new faces.

In the midst of a 1-17 spell, sophomore center fielder Vance Honeycutt broke through on Sunday with a double and a moonshot home run to center. When asked about the Preseason All-American's recent slump, head coach Scott Forbes was quick to point out the difficulty of remaining consistent throughout the season.

“A buddy of mine asked me this morning if I was worried about Vance, and I was quick to say absolutely not. It's too early.” Forbes said. “I’ve been around this game a long time and hitting is hard.”

Continuing his unprecedented start to the season was junior infielder Jackson Van De Brake, who added two more homers to bring his total to six on the young season.

Despite hitting just a single home run in his two seasons at Tacoma Community College, the Washington native has already made his presence felt in the middle of the Tar Heels' lineup, regardless of the type of pitch he faces.

“He’s gotten stronger in our weight room," Forbes said. "You know he can do some damage and he’s done it not just against fastballs, but also with hanging breaking balls.”

Van De Brake's rapid improvement appears to be a microcosm of the Tar Heels' power-hitting approach at the plate, as the team has already belted 25 home runs this season. Seeing his teammates have success motivates Van De Brake, as he looks to remain a contributing piece to UNC's early power surge.

“We're going up there more and more confident the more balls are hit hard," Van De Brake said. "So you’re going to go out there saying I’m going to do that, too.”

While the bats were alive and well on Sunday, the pitching staff was also impressive and featured another standout performance from junior right-hander Matt Poston out of the bullpen.

After transferring from Florence Darlington-Tech, Poston has allowed just two hits in 7.1 innings of work. On Sunday, he even added a slider into his arsenal, which caught junior catcher Tomas Frick by surprise.

“‘He said, 'Hey, we’re going to throw a slider,’ and I was like what?” Frick said. “Right before he came in (to the game), he had just got it in the pins.”

Now 9-3 on the season, the Tar Heels will head into the beginning of conference play next weekend with a home series against No. 15 Virginia. 

The Cavaliers will likely offer a more difficult test than the Seawolves provided, but with momentum on their side, the Tar Heels will look to make a statement, and ultimately, to keep improving in the process.  

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