Diamond Pirates to Host Appalachian State

Diamond Pirates to Host Appalachian State

03/07/2003

East Carolina (8-4-1) vs. Appalachian State (2-7)
at Harrington Field

Saturday, Mar. 8, 1 p.m.
Sunday, Mar. 9, 1 p.m.

Live statistics

Pirates Tune Up for C-USA Play
Appalachian State visits Harrington Field for a two-game set which will serve as East Carolina's final weekend tuneup before starting Conference USA play. The Mountaineers and Pirates have met 18 previous times, with ECU winning 13 of those games. The most recent meeting was in the 2000 season when the Pirates swept a three-game series here in Greenville. This the final weekend of non-conference play for the Pirates, who travel to Houston for a three-game series next weekend.

Noting the Pirates

The Pirates' Greg Bunn turned in one of the most dominating relief pitching performances in school history this past Wednesday at Elon. Bunn struck out 10 of the 15 batters he faced over 4.1 scoreless innings while allowing just two hits and one walk. The game ended in a 5-5 tie when darkness fell after 12 complete innings.

Senior shortstop Luke Cherry has had the hottest bat of late as he currently boasts a seven-game hitting streak, during which he has batted .440 with six doubles and nine RBI. Cherry currently leads the team with his season .359 batting average.

True freshman catcher Jake Smith threw out three Elon base runners on Wednesday.

Senior right-hander Neal Sears needs two more pitching appearances for his 80th, which will tie the ECU career record.

Sophomore first baseman Ryan Norwood is tied for third in Conference USA in home runs with four. He has a six-game hitting streak going during which he has batted .455 with seven RBI.

East Carolina's team ERA of 2.97 is second in Conference USA only to UAB, which is at 2.52.

Tulane and UAB are currently the only Conference USA teams ranked in the national polls. Tulane is listed at No. 21 by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA), No. 23 by Baseball America, and No. 29 by Collegiate Baseball. UAB is ranked 31st by NCBWA and 27th by CB.

About the Mountaineers
After opening 2003 with seven straight losses in a tough schedule that included NCAA Tournament teams Wake Forest, Elon, Florida State, and North Carolina, the Mountaineers have rebounded to win their last two games (vs. Hofstra and Tennessee Tech) and enter the weekend with a 2-7 overall record. ASU, the second Southern Conference team on ECU's schedule this season, went 16-34 overall last year en route to a 10th-place finish in the SoCon. Outfielder Graham Thompson is the top batter with a .300 average, one home run, and four RBI, while freshman Nick Peterson has been the most consistent starting pitcher and owns a 1-2 record and 5.40 ERA.

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