Burnich helps Asheville advance

The former Fitch standout led N.C.-Asheville to the Clemson regional.
By JOHN KOVACH
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Steve Burnich of Austintown has played an important role in the University of North Carolina-Asheville baseball team's historic season in his junior year with the team.
Burnich, Asheville's starting third baseman from Fitch High, helped the Bulldogs win their first Big South Conference championship, qualify for their first NCAA Division I Tournament and to a compile a school-record 28 wins.
Asheville is only the second team at the school to qualify for an NCAA Tournament. The basketball team made it in 2003.
Asheville (28-33) makes its NCAA Regional debut today at Clemson (47-14) -- the Atlantic Coast Conference champion and the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament -- at 7 p.m. at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. Clemson has won 19 of its last 20 games.
Burnich leads team in HBPs
Burnich, who was redshirted last season but is in his third year as a starter, leads the team in hit-by-pitches with 10. He also is batting .277 (61-for-220) with 24 RBIs, 40 runs scored, three homers, 15 doubles and eight stolen bases.
Burnich helped Asheville rally from a 10-0 deficit to overcome Liberty, 16-11, last Saturday in the Big South championship game.
In the fifth inning, Burnich doubled home a run and then scored on a singleas the Bulldogs cut Liberty's lead to 10-4. In the sixth, Burnich hit a single to set up another run that cut the gap to 10-5.
Then in the eighth, Burnich was hit by a pitch and later scored on Elliot Arrington's groundout to make it 10-7.
Then after Edmund Locklear's walk reloaded the bases, Rob Vernon's grand slam gave Asheville the lead for good.
Burnich's 2004 season was highlighted by his base-running. He went 17-for-18 in stolen bases and wound up the season with 14 straight stolen bases. In 2003 as a freshman, he started 29 games and played in 40 of them.
While at Fitch, he batted .465 as a senior with 10 doubles, one homer and 15 stole bases.
"We know Clemson is very good," declared Asheville's second-year coach Willie Stewart. "They are exceptional in every phase of the game. We're going to have be at our very best to have a chance to win."
Asheville and Clemson will be playing for only the third time ever. The Tigers lead the series, 2-0.
"We try to play in tough places like Florida, Florida State and Tennessee to prepare for just this, playing in a regional," said Stewart, whose team has played 34 road games this year. "I wanted our guys to get used to playing in front of places that host regionals. I think playing in those venues helped us last weekend and throughout the season."