Stanford Takes Series Against No. 4 UNC

For a team that came into the series unranked, the Stanford Cardinal baseball team went into Chapel Hill and really handled their business. On Friday, they beat UNC 12-9 in what was a back-and-forth game for the first four innings. Saturday, UNC got their revenge in an 11-1 route.

Sunday, Stanford took the series in a route of their own, taking down the Tar Heels 7-0. UNC hadn't been shut out at home since Dallas Baptist did so on February 23, 2020. Stanford is the first ACC opponent to blank them at home since NC State on May 18, 2019.

This was also the first time that Stanford has taken a series from a top-5 opponent since they beat No. 3 Oregon State from April 1-3 in 2022.

The Cardinal came into this season with three top-150 starting pitchers in the country, with Matt Scott at No. 22, sophomore Joey Volchko at No. 36, and sophomore Christian Lim at No. 43. Yesterday, it was Volchko that had his chance to shine.

He went 5.1 scoreless innings with just three hits and two walks allowed, and also added six strikeouts. While Volchko was tremendous on Sunday, it wasn't until the fifth inning that he received a little cushion from his offense. The score was knotted at zero in the top of the fifth, when catcher Charlie Saum led off the frame with a solo homer.

Stanford would add another run on a one-out safety squeeze attempt by left fielder Ethan Hott. He would later tack on a solo home run for his second dinger in as many games. In the top of the sixth, Brandon Larson worked a double with one out, and Rintaro Sasaki would follow that with a fly out to put two away.

The Cardinal would add three more runs to the board, making it 5-0 for Volchko entering the bottom of the frame.

UNC had a chance to get back into this one in that inning, with Kane Kepley swatting a one-out triple to right, which was followed by a Luke Stevenson walk. With two on and one away, manager David Esquer made a change on the mound, bringing in Aidan Keenan, who would get a strikeout and a ground out to end the threat.

Keenan would end up going 2.2 innings, facing 10 batters, and striking out five of them. He allowed just one hit and one walk.

For the first time in his college career, Rintaro Sasaki was unable to reach base, going 0-for-4, and snapping his on-base streak at 14 games.

Stanford lost more games at home to unranked Xaiver last weekend, splitting the four game series, than they did against a top-five team in UNC. Baseball is truly unpredictable at times.

Following the stellar weekend performance, Stanford is 12-3 on the year, and 2-1 in ACC play. Their next opponent will be welcoming Duke, beginning on Friday, March 14, and running through Sunday, March 16. First pitch on Friday is set for 6:05 p.m. (PT).