By R.L. Bynum
It will likely be a battle of junior aces when No. 2 North Carolina meets Virginia Tech in the ACC tournament quarterfinals on Friday.
UNC is expected to start All-ACC First Team pick Jason DeCaro (10–2, 2.03 ERA), with the Hokies likely countering with All-ACC Second Team pick Brett Renfrow (5–4, 4.65 ERA).
The No. 7-seed Hokies (30–23) earned a spot in the 11 a.m. game at Charlotte’s Truist Field (ACC Network) with a 17–10 second-round victory Wednesday night over No. 10 Notre Dame, which had defeated No. 15 Clemson 5–4 in Tuesday’s first round. The game was originally scheduled for 3 p.m. but was moved earlier because of the weather forecast.
“They’re good,” Virginia Tech coach John Szefc said after Wednesday’s game of the Tar Heels. “They’re always good there. But I think we’re pretty good, too. I look forward to the challenge. I think our guys will really welcome that challenge.”
Virginia Tech started Ethan Grim against the Irish, and he left after failing to get an out and giving up four hits and four runs.
Don’t expect the same sort of performance from Renfrow. The right-hander won his last four ACC outings with a 1.53 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and opponents hitting .179 (11–6 vs. Pittsburgh on April 17, 4–0 vs. N.C. State on April 24, 9–1 at California on May 1, 5–1 against Clemson on May 14). He took a shutout into the seventh inning in three of those games, blanking N.C. State through eight innings.
The programs haven’t met since UNC took two of three in a Blacksburg, Va., series April 18–20, 2025. Renfrow gave up eight hits, five runs and three walks with eight strikeouts over 5⅔ innings in the Tar Heels’ 9–6 victory in the opener of that series, outdueled by Jake Knapp. DeCaro got the win in the series finale, 7–4, giving up four hits, two runs and four alks with six strikeouts in 5⅓ innings.
UNC last played Virginia Tech in the ACC tournament in 2022, when the Tar Heels won 10–0 in Charlotte on their way to the title.
The Hokies rallied from deficits of 4–0 and 5–3 against the Irish, scoring three runs in both the second and third innings, and four runs in both the sixth and eighth innings, piling up 19 hits.
Second baseman Ethan Bell led the Hokies, going 2-for-2 with two home runs, two walks, two hit-by-pitches, three RBI and four runs scored. Designated hitter Hudson Lutterman finished 3-for-5 with a double, a walk, four RBI and four runs scored.
Bell, who made the ACC All-Freshman Team, leads the Hokies in doubles (17), home runs (15) and RBI (50) with a 1.010 OPS and a .994 fielding percentage.
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ACC tournament
At Truist Field in Charlotte
Buy tickets here.
Final on ESPN2; all other games on ACC Network
Tuesday’s first round
No. 16 Duke 21, No. 9 N.C. State 12
No. 12 Stanford 11, No. 13 California 4
No. 10 Notre Dame 5, No. 15 Clemson 4
No. 14 Pittsburgh 16, No. 11 Louisville 8
Wednesday’s second round
No. 8 Virginia 6, Duke 4
No. 5 Miami 11, Stanford 2
No. 7 Virginia Tech 17, Notre Dame 10
Pittsburgh 7, No. 6 Wake Forest 4
Quarterfinals
Thursday’s games
Virginia (36–20) vs. No. 1 (No. 3 ranked) Georgia Tech (45–9), 11 a.m.
Miami (37–17) vs. No. 4 Boston College (36–20), 3 p.m.
Friday’s games
Virginia Tech (30–23) vs. No. 2 (No. 2 ranked) North Carolina (43–10–1), 11 a.m.
Pittsburgh (32–23) vs. No. 3 (No. 22 ranked) Florida State (37–15), 3 p.m.
Saturday’s semifinals
Thursday winners, 1 p.m.
Friday winners, 5 p.m.
Sunday’s championship
Noon
| Date(s) | Day/ month | Times/ scores | Opponent (current rank) | Record/ TV * |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| February | ||||
| 13–14 | Fri., Sat. | W, 9–4; W, 12–2 (7); W, 4–3 (11) | vs. Indiana | 3–0 |
| 17 | Tuesday | W, 10–0 (7) | vs. Richmond | 4–0 |
| 18 | Wednesday | W, 5–3 | vs. Longwood | 5–0 |
| 20–22 | Fri.-Sun | W, 10–0 (8); L, 10–3; T, 3–3 | vs. East Carolina | 6–1–1 |
| 24 | Tuesday | W, 9–1 | vs. N.C. A&T | 7–1–1 |
| 25 | Wednesday | W, 13–3 (7) | vs. VCU | 8–1–1 |
| 27–28 | Fri., Sat. | W, 16–3 (7); W, 12–2 (7) | vs. Le Moyne | 10–1–1 |
| March | ||||
| 1 | Sunday | W, 21–1 (7) | vs. Le Moyne | 11–1–1 |
| 3 | Tuesday | W, 5–1 | vs. Elon | 12–1–1 |
| 6–7 | Fri., Sat | L, 13–3 (7); L, 9–2; W, 8–7 (12) | vs. Virginia | 13–3–1, 1–2 ACC |
| 10 | Tuesday | W, 13–3 (7) | vs. Bucknell | 14–3–1 |
| 13–15 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 8–1; W, 6–2; W, 10–2 | at California | 17–3–1, 4–2 |
| 18 | Wednesday | W, 8–2 | vs. UNCG | 18–3–1 |
| 20–22 | Fri.–Sun. | W, 11–1 (8); L, 2–0; W, 7–6 | vs. Louisville | 20–4–1, 6–3 |
| 24 | Tuesday | W, 9–1 | vs. South Carolina in Charlotte | 21–4–1 |
| 28, 29 | Sat., Sun | W, 6–5; W, 13–7; W, 15–10 | at Notre Dame | 24–4–1, 9–3 |
| 31 | Tuesday | W, 5–4 (14) | vs. Campbell | 25–4–1 |
| April | ||||
| 2–4 | Thur.-Sat. | L, 6–1; W, 5–2; W, 8–7 | vs. Boston College | 27–5–1, 11–4 |
| 7 | Tuesday | W, 8–4 | vs. Charlotte | 28–5–1 |
| 10–12 | Fri.–Sun. | L, 9–5; W, 6–4 (14); W, 12–5 | at Clemson | 30–6–1, 13–5 |
| 14 | Tuesday | W, 14–5 | vs. UNCW | 31–6–1 |
| 17–19 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 5–2; W, 14–4 (8); L, 5–2 | vs. No. 3 Georgia Tech | 33–7–1, 15–6 |
| 21 | Tuesday | W, 9–2 | vs. High Point | 34–7–1 |
| 23–25 | Thur.–Sat. | W, 3–1; L, 3–1; W, 22–5 (7) | at Duke | 36–8–1, 17–7 |
| 28 | Tuesday | L, 12–2 | vs. No. 24 Coastal Carolina | 36–9–1 |
| May | ||||
| 3 | Sunday | W, 13–0 (7) (non-conference game) | vs. Duke | 37–9–1 |
| 8–10 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 4–1; W, 12–2 (8); W, 7–3 | vs. Pittsburgh | 40–9–1, 20–7 |
| 12 | Tuesday | W, 13–7 | at UNCW | 41–9–1 |
| 14–16 | Thur.-Sat. | W, 9–4; W, 17–7 (8); L, 7–2 | at N.C. State | 43–10–1, 22–8 |
| ACC tournament | Charlotte | |||
| 22 | Friday | 11 a.m. | Quarterfinal vs. Virginia Tech | ACCN |
| 23 | Saturday | 5 p.m. | Semifinal vs. (with QF win) FSU, WF or Pitt | ACCN |
| 24 | Sunday | Noon | Championship | ESPN2 |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| 29–31 | Fri.-Sun. | Regionals | Campus sites | |
| June | ||||
| 5–7 | Fri.-Sun. | Super Regionals | Campus sites | |
| 12–22 | Fri.-Mon | College World Series | Omaha, Neb. |
Photo via hokiesports.com
