CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Interstat) — The seed Miami Hurricanes (36-17) open the ACC Baseball Championship on Wednesday against the Stanford Cardinal (28-25) at Truist Field, a neutral-site matchup of two teams trending in opposite directions.

Miami, winner of 11 of its last 14, leans on right-hander AJ Ciscar, who tossed seven shutout innings with four strikeouts in a 7-4 win at Florida State on May 16. Ciscar (7-3, 3.72 ERA) allowed no hits and one earned run in that outing, bouncing back from a 5-earned-run performance against Louisville on May 9. Over his last four starts, he has a 2.28 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 23 2/3 innings. The junior has been especially effective against Stanford, throwing 6 2/3 innings of two-run ball in a 6-3 win on April 17 – though the Cardinal roughed him up for five runs in 3 1/3 innings in the series finale April 19.

Stanford counters with a lineup powered by left fielder Jimmy Nati, who went 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBIs in Tuesday’s 11-4 win over California – the Cardinal’s third victory in five games. Nati, a senior, is hitting .312 with 12 homers and 49 RBIs, but he has been streaky: he was hitless in three of his previous four games before Tuesday’s outburst. Over his last 10 contests, Nati is batting .267 (8-for-30) with three homers and seven RBIs.

The teams split a three-game series at Stanford in mid-April, with Miami winning the first two games (4-3, 6-3) before Stanford erupted for a 14-6 win in the finale. The Hurricanes outscored the Cardinal 16-10 in the series but allowed 14 runs in the last game.

Miami is coming off a series win at Florida State, taking two of three. Besides Ciscar’s gem, the Hurricanes got a 3-for-4, one-homer performance from right fielder Derek Williams and a solo shot from third baseman Gabriel Milano in the 7-4 win. Stanford’s Tuesday win featured strong relief from Aidan Keenan (2 IP, 0 ER, 5 K) and starter Toran O’Harran (3 IP, 1 ER, 2 K).

The Cardinal are 6-5 in their last 11 games, while Miami is 8-3 over the same stretch. First pitch is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon, with the winner advancing in the double-elimination tournament.