HHS star propelled UNC to NCAA finals
By: Rudy Brandl
Tim Fedroff still hasn’t come down to earth, even after helping the University of North Carolina baseball team finish second in the nation at the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.
Playing in front of huge crowds and ESPN television audiences didn’t help Fedroff’s feet touch the ground. It only made him an even better player, one that millions of viewers watched perform for two weeks in late June.
The 2006 Hillsborough High graduate made a major splash on the college level in his freshman year. He continued living his dream of playing on the grand NCAA stage by leading the Tar Heels to the championship round of the College World Series.
"I’m still waiting for it to become reality," Fedroff said. "I just feel like I’m playing baseball. It doesn’t matter what uniform I’m wearing. I never got caught up in all that stuff. I never really let it affect me."
Things only became more surreal at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, where former Major League stars and ESPN crews were waiting. Guys like Barry Larkin and Robin Ventura watched batting practice. ESPN field reporter Erin Andrews was hanging out in the UNC dugout. Although he admitted to feeling somewhat in awe, Fedroff continued to go about his business.
"I’m still star struck by the whole Rosenblatt Stadium atmosphere," Fedroff said. "You get mobbed by kids wanting your autograph. B.J. Surhoff, a UNC grad, was watching the games. Those other guys were watching us take batting practice. You grow up watching those guys play baseball and now they’re watching you. It’s kind of weird."
After struggling in the first few games in Omaha, Fedroff caught fire when the Tar Heels needed it most. Having split their first two games in the double-elimination tourney, the Tar Heels faced three straight must-win games, including two vs. a Rice team that had pounded them the previous weekend. UNC came through with three clutch victories to earn a championship series rematch with Oregon State.
"The coaches just told us to relax and play our game," Fedroff said. "We responded well from losses all year long and we knew we weren’t out of it. We were still confident. We had three games in three days and our pitching really stepped up. You can’t afford to have a bad outing in a situation like that. You have to play well every single day."
Fedroff played a huge role in the bracket clinching victory over Rice that sent UNC to the finals. With the Tar Heels trailing 2-1 in the third inning, Fedroff blasted a two-run homer to the opposite field to turn a one-run deficit into a one-run lead his team would never relinquish.
"I want to say it was a lucky swing," Fedroff said with candor and modesty. "I don’t usually swing at the first pitch, especially outside. I knew I got it good, but I wasn’t sure if it was going out. Coming around second base, I saw the ump do the home run sign and I saw everybody going crazy. It was an unbelievable feeling."
Unfortunately, his parents, Tim Sr. and Mary, were back in Hillsborough at the high school graduation of their other son, Patrick. They and HHS coach Norm Hewitt didn’t see the blast until later in the evening on tape.
Hewitt and his wife, Peggy, attended the first two games of the CWS in Omaha. The veteran skipper who has amassed more than 500 victories in his distinguished career wasn’t disappointed by the young man he calls the best high school player he’s ever coached.
"Tim epitomizes balance and emotional control while remaining aggressive," Hewitt said. "This is not easy to do while under duress. He’s immediately aggressive out of the box and he makes few mistakes in the field. He doesn’t strike out much because he cuts down on his swing without losing total power. His intangibles are not taught, they’re innate. His ability to improve while adding knowledge to his control will make him even better. He has unbelievable instincts."
Fedroff loved having his high school coach on hand to watch him at Rosenblatt Stadium.
"I really enjoyed having them out there," Fedroff said. "That baseball atmosphere was right up Coach Hewitt’s alley."
Despite building momentum with the clutch three-game win streak, the Tar Heels ran out of steam and into a better Oregon State team in the final round. The Beavers played crisp baseball and got all the big hits to sweep UNC in two games.
"Our whole team was surprised by the outcome," Fedroff said. "Oregon State just played better baseball. Our bats went dead and our pitching didn’t hold up. They got hot at the right time."
Oregon State has defeated UNC in the finals the past two years. Fedroff and his teammates already are looking forward to another run at the national championship next June. The Tar Heels have several talented underclassmen, including national freshman of the year Dustin Ackley, in their program. They’ve also got Seton Hall Prep’s Rick Porcello, the National High School Player of the Year, coming to Chapel Hill. Porcello, a dominant presence on the mound, will give the Tar Heels another big-time pitcher.
Fedroff is spending part of his summer playing for the Wilmington (N.C.) Sharks in the Coastal Plains League. He’ll be coming back to Hillsborough to spend 10 days at home in mid-August before returning to Chapel Hill for his sophomore year. He’s planning to major in communications and will begin fall baseball workouts when he returns to the UNC campus.
Many of his UNC teammates were selected in the last Major League baseball draft and some likely will sign big league contracts. Fedroff plans to continue his education but hopes to be faced with the Major League option some time in the future. UNC head coach Mike Fox told Hewitt that Fedroff is a throwback player who will be drafted soon.
Fedroff is eligible to be drafted next year but isn’t concerned about it yet. His focus remains on improving all areas of his game to make himself the most complete ball player he can be.
"It’s always been my dream to play Major League baseball," Fedroff said. "You work as hard as you can and hope everything works out. I’m working real hard at improving every aspect of my game. I still don’t feel like I’m as good as I’m going to get. The harder you work, the better you get."
Whether that reality has hit him or not, Fedroff accomplished that in a big way in his freshman season in a North Carolina uniform.

