Anthony Donofrio had quite the game on Thursday in North Carolina’s blowout victory over the Pittsburgh Panthers in the 2024 ACC Tournament. He blasted two home runs on Thursday. The Tar Heels are the top seed in the 2024 ACC Baseball Tournament, and they played like it, blasting four home runs in the first inning of their 12-2 whipping of the Panthers. Following the win, Donofrio took some time to speak with the ACC Network crew.
What has his journey been like to the Tar Heels? “Thank you guys for having me on. I’m grateful to be here. You know, Coach Forbes found me in the portal and brought me on. And it couldn’t have gone better. You know, we’ve got a lot to do still but I’m humbled and grateful to be here,” Donofrio explained.
How has it been adjusting to such a loaded baseball conference like the ACC, with so much talent top to bottom? “I mean, you learn a lot. You know, there’s a lot of talented players out there. Vance Honeycutt, Casey Cook, to say the least. A lot of other guys went out and had a good performance today. This conference is where you want to play. This is the ACC. Power Five conferences,” Donofrio continued.
North Carolina had an absurdly good first inning, cranking out four home runs in their first five at bats against the Panthers. The hot start put the game out of reach before it even started, really. Has Donofrio ever seen an inning like the first inning on Thursday? “No, I can’t say that I have. But that’ll get the blood flowing a little bit. That’ll fire you up,” the UNC slugger said.
He got the home run party started on Thursday. “We’ve preached the process of our program. So, we take what we can get with each at bat. Casey had a good swing. Parks had a good swing. Strung a couple of good innings together and got some good hits,” Donofrio said.
After belting two home runs, would he say Thursday’s game was the best game he’s ever had? “I wouldn’t say I’ve ever had but it’s definitely a good game. You know, we got the win. So, that’s really all that matters at the end of the day,” Donofrio explained.
What are his thoughts on the ‘Heels upcoming matchup with the Wake Forest Demon Deacons? UNC will have yet another matchup with pitcher Chase Burns. “I mean, we’ve got talent across the board. But we’ve got hard workers as well. And when you combine those two, it’s a dangerous lineup. So, up and down the lineup. We’ve got guys that are gonna go swing the bat and some guys in the pen that are gonna lock it down. Shea’s [Sprague]’s gonna get the ball tomorrow and he’s gonna go out and pitch as good as he can. Which he normally does,” the UNC slugger finished.
Casey Cook also opened up on the offensive explosion
North Carolina’s Casey Cook also had a big day on Saturday. Following the game, he spoke with the ACC Network crew on the field. What does he think has gone into the offense to make that unit so special for the ‘Heels in 2024? “Just really focusing on our practice. We worked with Coach Wierz [Wierzbiacki]. Coach was big over there. We’ve worked with him a lot. And at the end of the day, just sticking to our approach and just do what’s been working for us all year,” Cook noted.
Cook has made a massive leap in his production from last year to this year. What exactly has he done to transform his career this season? “I’d just say over the offseason, just focusing on the stuff I wanted to improve. Again, working with Coach Wierzbiacki. And it’s started to show up in the game,” the UNC slugger continued.
UNC pitcher Jason DeCaro had a great performance against Pitt, throwing six strikeouts and allowing two earned runs in seven innings. “It’s unbelievable. I mean, he just turned 18 this year. It’s crazy. You wouldn’t believe it, because his mound presence is unreal, but yeah, he’s a stud. We love to watch him pitch,” Cook said.
Does UNC feel like they’ve been overlooked all year, even though they are the No. 1 seed in the tournament? “Yeah, we’ve been saying that all year. Just play with a chip on our shoulder. I feel like we haven’t been doubted all year. Our goal is just to show up here every single day and prove it,” the steadily rising draft prospect noted.
North Carolina head coach Steve Forbes has always noted that it’s a player-led team. What does that mean for Cook? “He just believes in being player led, so we can take care of all the team stuff and he just lets us go out there and play. He does all the stuff he has to do, schedule practice, but when the game comes around, we just go out and play and have fun out on the field.”
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