ELON, N.C. – Elon University baseball will play its first midweek contest of the season this Tuesday, Feb. 23 as the maroon and gold take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in a 3:30 p.m. game at Bryson Field at Boshamer Stadium.

COVERAGE
Live stats will be available and the game will be streamed on the ACC Digital Network.

PITCHING MATCHUPS

Elon	North Carolina
R-Fr. RH Spencer Bauer (0-0, 0.00 ERA)	So. LH Will Sandy (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

THE SERIES
- The Tar Heels (3-0) own a 38-9 lead in the all-time series that dates back to 1909.
- Elon is looking for its first win over UNC since a 4-2 victory at Latham Park on April 6, 2010 when the Tar Heels were ranked No. 20.
- The teams last met on Feb. 18, 2020 in Chapel Hill, N.C. with the then-No. 13 Tar Heels earning a 7-1 win. Ian Evans made his first career start for the Phoenix and allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits and two walks through 4.0 innings. Jack Roberts went 2-for-4 at the plate and scored a run, while Alex Iadisernia and Adam Spurlin both hit 1-for-4.

ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA
- UNC was picked to finish fifth in the Coastal Division in this year's ACC Preseason Coaches Poll.
- The Tar Heels opened the season with a series sweep of James Madison this past weekend, defeating the Dukes by scores of 8-1, 7-4 and 3-2, respectively.
- Redshirt sophomore Austin Love was named ACC Pitcher of the Week after his season debut against JMU on Feb. 19. The Salisbury, N.C. native tossed 6.0 hitless innings and tallied nine strikeouts with no runs allowed and two walks.
- UNC has three batters hitting .400 or better after Opening Weekend: Caleb Roberts leads the way with a .455 clip, Justice Thompson follows with a .417 average, and Brett Centracchio is batting .400. Roberts belted two home runs and drove in eight runs versus the Dukes, both team highs. He added one triple and one double with three runs scored to his totals.
- North Carolina will go with sophomore left-hander Will Sandy against the Phoenix. A native of Raleigh, N.C. Sandy was the team's Saturday starter during the shortened 2020 season. He made four starts and pitched 20.0 innings, recording a 4.50 ERA with an 0-2 record and 20 strikeouts. He will make his first start of the season Tuesday.
- UNC's arms own a collective 1.33 ERA after three games while holding opposing hitters to a .153 average. The group finished with 36 strikeouts and issued just nine walks in 27.0 innings versus the Dukes.
- The Tar Heels are led by first-year Head Coach Scott Forbes, who takes over the program following the retirement of longtime coach Mike Fox in August. The 25th head coach in program history, Forbes has been on the UNC coaching staff for 20 years and previously served as the team's associate head coach, batting coach, pitching coach and recruiting coordinator.

PHOENIX DROPS OPENING SERIES TO UNCG
- Elon opened its season at UNC Greensboro this past weekend, losing the series two games to one.
- The Phoenix took Game One by a final score of 7-4. The team jumped out to an early 6-1 lead after scoring two runs in the second, third and fourth innings. Jared Wetherbee (1-0) earned the win after holding the Spartans to one run through 4.0 innings with five strikeouts, three hits and four walks. Anthony Galason finished 2-for-5, doubled twice, drove in three runs and scored another.
- UNCG knotted the series at a game apiece with an 8-3 decision in Game Two. Freshman Ben Simon made his first career start, limiting the hosts to one unearned run on two hits and four walks while striking out seven in a no decision. Cole Reynolds put Elon ahead 3-2 in the seventh with his first career home run, but the Spartans responded with three runs in the home half of the inning and three more in the eighth.
- In Sunday's rubber match, a Galason solo home run gave the maroon and gold a 2-1 advantage in the sixth inning. After Trevor Kirk escaped the bottom half of the inning with a bases-loaded strikeout, UNCG ran the bases full again in the bottom half of the eighth. A single through the left side scored two and Elon was unable to come up with a response. 

UP NEXT
Elon will host VCU for a weekend series this Friday-Sunday, February 26-28 for the team's home-opening series. Game One will begin at 4 p.m., followed by a 2 p.m. start for Game Two and a 1 p.m. first pitch for Game Three.