ACC Elo Ratings, Week 5
Plus, a rankings update and a midweek preview.
ACC Elo Ratings
All stats as of Tuesday, March 23 at 9 p.m. Visit WarrenNolan.com for more info.
Rankings Update
Here’s the latest look at the rankings from D1Baseball.com, Baseball America, and the NCBWA (National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association).
Louisville, the conference’s highest-ranked team in the national polls, has won eight of its last nine games. The Cardinals have swept both Boston College and North Carolina State since losing their first series of the year to Georgia Tech. Michael Kirian has taken the Friday night starting role and thrived, winning each of his four starts and striking out 27 in just 23.1 innings.
Virginia Tech joined the Eagles in falling out of the polls after dropping its second straight weekend series. After dropping two of three to a now-ranked opponent in Florida State, the Hokies went to South Carolina and dropped two of three to Clemson.
North Carolina, after taking two of three from BC, is now in all three polls and is as high as No. 11 in Baseball America’s. The Tar Heels had a statement win on Tuesday, dominating No. 8 East Carolina in an 8-1 victory.
Midweek Preview
March 24 - vs. Merrimack (3-8) at 4 p.m. on ACC Network Extra
For the first time in program history, Boston College is facing Merrimack, a program that jumped up to Division I last season. The Warriors have lost their first three weekend series (to Maine, Massachusetts, and Bryant) and were most recently outscored 42-1 in a three-game stretch by the Bulldogs.
This game, rescheduled from March 16, will likely be a chance for the Eagles’ lineup to bounce-back after managing just four runs on 13 hits in Sunday’s loss to UNC. Merrimack’s pitching staff has a dreadful 7.42 ERA and opponents are hitting .280 against. The Warriors have allowed double-digit runs in five of their eight losses and will have their hands full with Sal Frelick (.397) and Luke Gold (.370) both ranking in the top 15 in the ACC by batting average.
Merrimack’s struggled to get its bats going, too. The Warriors hit just .200 (20-for-100) over the weekend against Bryant and struck out 33 times. On the year, Merrimack has already accumulated 108 strikeouts in 11 games—nearly 10 per game. The Warriors have some pop—they clubbed seven home runs in a 14-5 win over Albany—but that was by far their best offensive game of the year and they’ve largely struggled since. Keep an eye on Joey Porricelli, Merrimack’s top hitter. He leads the team with a .278 batting average, three home runs, and 11 runs scored.
First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. on ACC Network Extra.
Images courtesy of Merrimack Athletics, Louisville Athletics, and ND Athletics