No. 10 Hurricanes Resume Conference Play with Duke

No. 10 Miami 14-3 (3-0 ACC)
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Duke 7-12 (0-3 ACC)
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CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The University of Miami baseball team returns to conference play with their first weekend road trip of the season against the Blue Devils of Duke University.

The tenth-ranked Hurricanes, who enter this weekend’s series on a six-game winning streak, are coming off a big road win in Orlando against the No. 19 Central Florida Knights.

“O Captain! My Captain!”
The Canes received a big boost in the offseason when transfer catcher Peter O’Brien and graduate student lefthander Eric Erickson were both declared eligible by the NCAA.

True to their elections, the team’s two captains for the 2012 season have played key roles through the team’s first stretch.

Through 17 games, O’Brien is currently the team leader in a number of key hitting categories: batting average (.367), runs (16), hits (22), homeruns (six), slugging percentage (.767) and on-base percentage (.474).

Erickson has impressed in his first four starts
of the season; the Sarasota native has a 24:1 K:BB ratio and has picked up wins in three of his four starts. His 3.16 ERA is second-best on the team among starters only to Steven Ewing.

Freshman Fever in the Gables
Head Coach Jim Morris has enjoyed the benefits of strong play from some of his youngest players so far this season.

Though his conference-leading 15-game hitting streak came to an end against UCF, freshman third baseman Esteban Tresgallo’s play has been an integral part of the Canes’ early-season success.

Through the first 17 games of the season, Tresgallo has the second-highest batting average on the team (.356), is tied for the team-lead in doubles (7), boasts the second-highest slugging percentage (.559), and the third-highest on-base percentage (.433).

Shortstop Jarred Mederos alongside relievers Alex Fernandez and Chris Diaz, have also made an impact for the Hurricanes during their freshman seasons in Coral Gables.

Scouting the Competition: Duke Blue Devils
Miami holds the all-time series advantage over Duke by a 23-4 margin, including a win last time-out against the Blue Devils at Alex Rodriguez Park in May 2011 (5-2 win). The Hurricanes took two of three games in last year’s series.

The Blue Devils, off to a 7-12 start in 2012, have been led offensively by outfield duo Grant McCabe (.375 average, 15 RBI) and Will Piwnica-Worms (.324 average, two homeruns 13 RBI), along with infielder Jeff Kremer (.357 averaege, team-leading 25 hits).

Though they were swept by Florida State in their opening conference series, the Blue Devils feature a talented starting rotation. Hard-throwing Marcus Stroman (3.08 ERA, 39 strikekouts) projects to become the first first-round draft pick in school history this summer, while Trent Swart (3.10 ERA, 24 strikeouts) and Robert Huber (3.86 ERA) also highlight a strong rotation.

Weekend Schedule:

GAME 1: FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 6 p.m.
PROBABLE STARTERS
MIAMI – (LHP) Eric Erickson vs. DUKE – (RHP) Marcus Stroman

GAME 2: SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 2 p.m
PROBABLE STARTERS
MIAMI – (RHP) Eric Whaley vs. DUKE – (LHP) Trent Swart

GAME 3: SUNDAY, MARCH 18, 1 p.m.
PROBABLE STARTERS
MIAMI – TBD vs. DUKE – (RHP) Robert Huber