Cavasinni gets key hits against George Washington

All weekend North Carolina relied on timely hits in its sweep of George Washington, and all weekend Mike Cavasinni delivered.

The fifth-year senior went 4-for-13 on the weekend. While getting four hits in a three-game weekend series is not blazing, he got hits when it mattered. Cavasinni singled three times with two outs in or after the seventh inning.

On Friday, he came up twice in big situations — once in the ninth and once in the 10th — and was able to get on base.

“The good thing about Cavi coming up is our other guys are watching and going, ‘OK, here’s the smallest guy on our team, and here’s how you respond in that situation,’” UNC coach Mike Fox said. “So if anything else, he’s setting a good example this weekend in helping us win.”

In a weekend rife with young players making their collegiate debuts, it makes sense that they would look up to the elder statesman of the team — especially when he is getting big hits to help the team win.

“It’s very clutch of him,” freshman Bryn Renner said. “A fifth-year senior, he’s been here forever. He’s actually taught me and all of the other freshmen how to play here, so he’s a great leader and I’m just really happy for him.”

The first big hit on Friday, a groundball up the middle, started a two-out rally when the Tar Heels were down to their final out. Cavasinni was eventually brought around to score.

The second was a seeing-eye single that moved Dillon Hazlett to third and scored Ryan Graepel.

“On Friday night, it was more I just wanted to get on and get something going,” Cavasinni said. “I crowded the plate. I was willing to get hit with the ball, do anything to just get on, and they just happened to throw a ball that I got lucky on and hit just to the right spot.”

On Saturday, Cavasinni’s big-hit parade continued, as he singled home two runners with the bases loaded to put the Tar Heels in front for good. UNC had struggled to develop anything until the hit in the seventh.

“He’s been through the wars,” Fox said. “He’s not scared. He’s played on the biggest stage you can play on, and he’s not intimidated. He’s a guy you want up there because he’s usually going to give you a good at-bat.”

Cavasinni also extended his hit streak to nine games with a single on Sunday. The hit streak marks the longest of Cavasinni’s career, and extends from last season.

“He’s such a leader,” freshman Brian Goodwin said. “If you’re going to follow anyone on the team, he’s the one you should be looking to follow. He’s just so humble, but then in the big situations he always comes through.”


Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.