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UNC's Jason DeCaro, Scott Forbes and Sam Angelo after win over Oklahoma #UNC
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0:00
Shout out late night. I don't know if
0:02
this is working. That's um
0:05
I mean that's a really good arm. Um one
0:10
of the best most talented arms we faced
0:12
all season. Uh so you have to give our
0:15
guys credit. I want to give Coach
0:17
Jackson and coach Whis's Vicki a ton of
0:20
credit. They work their tails off. I'm
0:23
so blessed to have the staff that I
0:24
have. Um those two guys had our hitters
0:27
prepared.
0:28
Um, obviously this guy is the hitter.
0:31
Uh, but you know, great example is is is
0:34
Sam over here. He hadn't really started
0:37
a game in that two strike stance all
0:39
year. Uh, the coaches as soon as he got
0:42
done the cages said, "Hey, you're
0:44
dhing." And just, you know, that's what
0:46
we want you to do right off the bat.
0:48
That was a huge swing of the bat. You
0:49
know, we scored all those runs with two
0:51
outs. Um, I mean, I thought our our guys
0:54
were locked in all night. Uh they have a
0:56
really really good team. Um but that was
1:00
that was a great win for our guys. I'm
1:02
excited to watch them again tomorrow.
1:04
I'm glad that we we get to recover with
1:06
it being a late game, but I did tell him
1:08
it's going to be the hardest game of the
1:09
season. You have to expect it to be that
1:11
way. But that was a really good win for
1:13
us. Questions. Tommy in the front row.
1:15
Then Adam back. Coach George, we talked
1:18
all year and you've been consistent that
1:20
your team hits the fast ball pretty good
1:23
and then they go out and do it tonight
1:25
right out of the gate. What did you guys
1:28
see in prep for for Witherspoon? What
1:30
did you see getting ready and how did
1:32
you get coach Jackson and Bicki to get
1:35
guys like Sam to sort of implement it? I
1:38
mean that it's it's more them. Um, I
1:41
trust them. Uh, and they just hand me
1:44
the sheet on what we're going to do,
1:46
what our approach is going to be, and I
1:48
stay out the way. I just go back in the
1:50
coaches in the in the cages and ask the
1:53
guys how they're doing. You know, build
1:55
them up, make sure they're ready, make
1:56
sure they're confident, keep them loose.
1:59
Um, you know, and a little birdie
2:02
apparently was saying that we couldn't
2:03
hit 95. So, I think the guys took that
2:06
personally. Um, and but their approach,
2:09
you know, they stuck with it throughout
2:11
the whole time he was out there. Uh, and
2:14
Sam could tell you more about that, but
2:15
they did a really good job of of
2:18
listening to coach where Vicki he told
2:20
him where to stand on the plate. Um, we
2:22
might we need to start choked up right
2:25
out of the gate and set the tone by just
2:27
having quality at bats. And sometimes
2:29
when you face an arm like that, you're
2:31
so amped up that you're you're just too
2:34
big with your swings. Um, we showed him
2:36
some video of guys that have had success
2:38
against him, what they did, and they let
2:41
the ball come to them and, uh, you know,
2:43
you notice some of the balls we hit
2:44
early were opposite field. Gavin drilled
2:46
that ball to right and Sam hit the home
2:48
run to left. Uh, so that but still
2:51
players have to do it, so I have to give
2:53
them the credit. Adam, then Rod, Sam,
2:56
can you take us through that that first
2:58
at bat that that led to the three-run
3:00
home run? Along the lines of what Scott
3:02
is talking about, did you think overall
3:05
at the plate, you guys sort of were
3:08
looking forward to the challenge of
3:10
facing Witherspoon? Did you did you want
3:12
did you did you think you guys wanted it
3:14
to? That's obviously a really really
3:15
good arm and that's feels pretty hard.
3:17
So, Coach Whisb did told us all in the
3:20
cages, he said, "Hey, just be on time
3:21
for the fast ball." And when I walked up
3:23
there to the plate, I looked over Coach
3:24
Forbes and he did a nice big breath and
3:26
told me just to relax and be in that
3:28
moment. And that was really good for me.
3:30
to be in that moment. So, it was wasn't
3:33
I was trying to be on time for a fast
3:34
ball. So,
3:37
uh Sam, two home runs coming into
3:39
tonight. You get two home runs tonight.
3:42
I'm sure you dreamed of these these kind
3:43
of moments when you decided to commit
3:45
here. What was it like to see it come to
3:47
fruition on a night like this? I mean,
3:49
just as we were getting ready for the
3:51
game, looking up at that Carolina
3:52
baseball crowd. Um, that's them being
3:56
there for us and that cheering really
3:58
got us going in the beginning and that's
4:00
really what it's all about. It's fans.
4:01
So,
4:04
Sam, how much confidence does this give
4:06
the rest of the lineup considering uh
4:08
Witherspoon with 120 strikeouts and only
4:11
20 walks moving on throughout the rest
4:13
of the region? I mean that that's just a
4:15
challenge like everyone's saying and
4:17
that really fired us up and we wanted to
4:18
prove that we can beat an arm like that.
4:20
So Ryan Bryce, uh Sam, can you talk a
4:24
little bit about what uh coach Ford was
4:26
saying and in terms of that change to
4:28
your stance and kind of preparation um
4:31
leading up to this game? Yeah. So it's
4:33
it's 98 miles an hour. So I just really
4:35
trying to see the ball as best I can. So
4:37
as I was taking DB, I felt pretty good
4:39
and coach Ricky gave me the idea. They
4:41
said, "Hey, just to see the ball a
4:42
little bit better, why don't you try
4:44
widening out a little bit and not
4:45
striding?" And I saw that first pitch
4:48
and I felt pretty good about it. And I
4:50
didn't miss that fast ball. So, Grace,
4:51
thank you. Jason, we've talked about
4:53
your mental fortitude dealing with
4:55
runners on and obviously eight
4:56
strikeouts are big, but how big was it
4:58
for your game that there were zero
5:00
walks? Um, obviously that's huge. Um,
5:03
credit to the offense for going out and
5:05
giving me an early lead to work with.
5:06
Um, makes it a lot easier to just go
5:08
after guys and And credit to them and
5:11
credit to the defense behind me for, you
5:13
know, being elite all season and able to
5:15
trust them like that. It's pretty
5:16
special.
5:19
Yeah, Sam, it seemed to us that part of
5:21
the approach tonight was not to get deep
5:25
in counts to to go after early pitches.
5:28
Did that did that play into it at all?
5:31
Yeah, our mindset is just attack. Coach
5:32
Forbes tells us all the time, go out
5:33
there and attack. Always be on the hunt.
5:36
So, that's really what we were looking
5:37
forward just to see a fast ball and go
5:39
get it.
5:42
Um Sam, Coach Forbes has also talked
5:44
about, you know, if you, you know, have
5:46
a big first inning, you still have tons
5:47
of baseball to go. The game's not over.
5:49
So, what was the mindset? You know, you
5:51
have a lot of momentum from that first
5:52
inning, but also not getting too ahead
5:54
of yourself. Yeah, we had a great first
5:55
inning and it's just like I said, always
5:57
being on the hunt and we had Jason
5:59
there, so we knew we were going to get
6:00
have a good outing and he's going to
6:02
keep that score low for them. So, it was
6:04
just always being ready to go and just
6:07
put keep scoring runs the end of the
6:08
day.
6:10
Second Sam, talking about your season as
6:13
a whole, how were you able to sort of
6:15
rebounded and come out with a
6:16
performance like this? What kind of work
6:17
did you put in?
6:20
Just stuff we do every day. Coach Forbes
6:22
told me I was playing so get that
6:24
opportunity, try to do the best I can to
6:26
help the team.
6:28
Yeah, Adam.
6:30
Coach, uh, the ACC is the only power
6:34
conference that survived both days of
6:36
the NCAA tournament. Can you talk about
6:38
how much depth there is in this
6:39
conference and how maybe some teams feel
6:42
like they got cheated out of hosting or
6:44
not even being in the regionals.
6:46
Yeah, you know, I've been saying it from
6:48
the get-go this year. I've been in the
6:49
league a long time and I always felt
6:51
like there were years where you kind of
6:54
had an idea like, hey, you know, we're
6:56
going to get this series or we can mix
6:58
in a sweep to make up for being swept.
7:01
Um, this year anybody could beat you.
7:04
Um, and it hadn't been like that all the
7:06
time. Um, and that's a credit to our
7:09
league, a credit to the commitment
7:10
people are making to baseball, credit to
7:12
the really good coaches and great
7:13
players. Um, but that league prepared
7:16
us. I really felt like I told our guys,
7:17
I mean, we saw arms like not quite like
7:20
that, but pretty dang close in our
7:22
league, especially at the bullpen. I
7:24
mean, uh, Prescott for Florida State was
7:27
throwing every pitch 97 to 99, might
7:29
have touched 100. Obviously, Jamie
7:31
Arnold is is who he is and some others.
7:34
But the league prepares you too because
7:36
so many teams play different styles. You
7:38
look at a team like Louisville that
7:39
steals a ton of bases. BC steals a ton
7:42
of bases. And then you got a team like
7:43
Duke that's just older um that's that's
7:47
powerful. So NC State, you know, teams
7:50
throughout our league, Clemson that run
7:52
a lot, they the ACC's gotten so much
7:54
better. Um and I said it earlier, you
7:56
know, I really felt like
7:59
um I felt like Georgia Tech should have
8:02
hosted. Um somebody told me they did
8:03
lose. So obviously uh but I still
8:06
believe in him and I think our league is
8:07
as good top to bottom as any any
8:10
conference in the country. I've got four
8:12
more. That's it. Adam RL, Tommy and
8:14
Grace. Adam. Scott, who was the little
8:17
birdie that said you couldn't hit 95? I
8:20
can't I can't give you my sources, but I
8:22
can tell you that I'm really proud of
8:24
Scott to my left. I mean, here's a guy
8:25
that has been one of the best hitters in
8:29
Division 3 baseball. Like one of the
8:31
best. and had an unbelievable fall for
8:33
us, an unbelievable preseason. Started
8:35
the the the year in the middle of the
8:37
order and it hasn't gone exactly as
8:40
planned, but I tell you what, he has
8:43
bought in to to what UNCC is about,
8:46
being about the team first. Um, and
8:48
there's no doubt in my mind that's why
8:50
he was rewarded in a big big uh
8:52
situation like that. Quick followup, did
8:54
did was there a tale with Witherspoon?
8:58
It looked like you guys were seeing him
9:00
very well early. Maybe he was tipping
9:02
some pitches. I don't know. Might have
9:04
been some thought to that. You know, I'm
9:06
looking over there and and Chad Flax in
9:08
here and he knows what I mean by this is
9:11
sometimes as a coach is like you just
9:13
walk in the cages and it's like our
9:14
dudes are freaking ready to go. Um, you
9:18
know, I I don't I don't no offense to
9:20
anybody. I don't think it would have
9:21
mattered. Um, and I challenge them. Hey,
9:22
we got to be like that every game this
9:24
time of year. And that's how this group
9:27
has been for the most part, especially
9:29
the second half of the season or really
9:31
since pit. Doesn't mean we've played
9:33
great. Uh but if anything, I just have
9:36
to slow them down. But I can tell they
9:38
are locked in and uh as coaches, you
9:40
know, we just we just have to stay out
9:42
of their way. All Sam hadn't started
9:45
backtoback games since early April, but
9:48
you started in the first two tournament
9:50
games. Obviously, it worked out well,
9:52
but what led you to go in that
9:53
direction? You know, I'm a firm believer
9:57
and I tell the guys because you got to
9:58
practice what you preach is is I watch
10:00
everything as a head coach. I watch as
10:02
much BP in the cages. I watch it on the
10:04
field. I watch how deliberate you are in
10:06
your conditioning when I'm in the weight
10:07
room. That's why I like to go in there
10:08
and walk on the treadmill when we lift.
10:10
And um you know, sometimes a guy just
10:15
looks really really good or he matches
10:17
up. We felt like yesterday Sam really
10:20
really matched up well. But we also
10:23
talked today about how much his conf his
10:25
his confidence look like it had gotten
10:26
back to where it was, you know, in the
10:30
preseason. Um, and when that's the case,
10:33
you know, at the end of the day with
10:34
these guys are so talented, that's about
10:36
70 75% of it. Uh but again I want to
10:39
give credit to coach coach Jackson and
10:41
coach where's Vicki because we looked at
10:43
different matchups and uh based on how
10:46
Sam had been throughout the season the
10:48
matchup wasn't great on paper um swing
10:51
pathwise but his swing looked as good as
10:53
it it had been and thank goodness uh we
10:57
came up with that decision. John, coach,
11:00
I mean obviously you come in with a
11:02
pitching plan in every game and then a
11:04
big lead sort of changes that. How how
11:06
did you deviate off of that? Getting Cam
11:09
some work and getting Ryan some work and
11:11
then how does that set you up for
11:13
tomorrow? Yeah, we're we're set up
11:15
extremely well because of this guy. Um I
11:17
think that was his career top strikeouts
11:19
from what he told me. I was like, man,
11:20
we got to get in double digits, but no
11:23
walks. Um Jason just set the tone and
11:25
that's why we are set up so well. But
11:27
it's also good uh to get guys. I thought
11:32
Chewy looked really, really good and he
11:35
just had bad luck. You know, balls beat
11:37
directly in the ground than a guy
11:38
bunting for a head doesn't have a bunt,
11:40
a drag bun on it all year. And then
11:42
Ryan's a freshman. So, um I know a lot
11:45
of people would say, "Well, I hate that
11:46
we had to use Lynch, but it's different
11:48
pitching in those games, so I think it's
11:50
going to work out for us. But we're set
11:51
up to go um you know how we'll give out
11:54
the ball tomorrow and we'll go from
11:56
there." Chris Jason, your entire day has
11:59
been set up for this. 606 first pitch.
12:02
When you have a delay, what do you do
12:04
during that delay to stay locked in
12:06
mentally and make sure you're ready to
12:07
physically go? Try not to do too much.
12:10
Um, sit in the locker room, relax a
12:13
little bit, keep it light. Uh, play some
12:15
games in there. Um, and once you find
12:18
out what time first pitch is, just try
12:20
and get ready for that. Keep it the
12:22
same. All right. Thanks everybody.
12:24
Congratulations. Make your
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