GREENVILLE — After continuously squeezing out victories the Pirates pieced together a no-doubter on Tuesday when they walloped UNC-Wilmington 20-5.

East Carolina’s 20-run output was by far its highest of the season and the team hopes that its hot bats come along for the plane ride to Alabama where it will face UAB for a three-game series that starts today 7:30 p.m.

The Pirates (19-5, 2-1) have been on a roll as they have won eight of their last nine games and will be riding a two-game winning streak when they face the Blazers (14-10, 2-1), who are coming off of a 5-1 stunner over No. 21 Alabama on Tuesday.

The key for ECU this season has been the work of its extraordinary pitching staff, which has been aided by some timely hits.

The Pirates enter the series holding a Conference USA-best 1.81 team ERA, which is nearly a run better than No. 2 UCF (2.77).

Reigning Conference USA Pitcher of the Year Seth Maness, and emerging ace Mike Wright, have been the catalyst on the staff so far this season. Maness has been extremely solid as he is 4-1 with 1.99 ERA and has struck out 41 batters in 45.1 innings. Wright is a perfect 4-0 on the year and has compiled a 2.06 ERA while fanning 26 batters in 35 innings.

Maness, the expected Friday starter, and Wright, the presumed Saturday starter, have the two best ERAs of any ECU pitcher who has over four starts.

Kevin Brandt (2-0, .84), who snagged the Sunday starting role from Zach Woods (1-2, 3.98), will not pitch this weekend has he and fellow pitcher Patrick Somers have been suspended indefinitely for violating team rules.

Possible candidates to fill Brandt’s spot as the Sunday starter are Woods, Shawn Armstrong (1-0, 3.60) or Austin Chrismon (0-0, 1.35).

While the starting rotation has been fantastic this season, the work of the bullpen has been equally stellar. Brad Mincey has done a wonderful job in long relief and is 4-1 with a .36 ERA. Despite coming out of the pen, Mincey has pitched the fourth-most innings for ECU with 25.

Closer Seth Simmons has been lights out for the Pirates as well and holds 3-0 record with an astounding 0.00 ERA. Simmons, who has four saves on the year, has been strikeout machine mowing down 20 batters in 12.2 innings pitched.

East Carolina has had some equally impressive performances at the plate as well. Freshman infielder Jack Reinheimer leads the team in hitting with a .343 average. Corey Thompson, who has started every game this season, is hitting only two points below Reinheimer and is second on the team in RBIs with 17.

Workhorse Zach Wright, who also has started every game this year which includes both game of a doubleheader against Memphis last weekend, leads the Pirates with 19 RBIs and seven home runs.

John Wooten and Trent Whitehead are the only other players to start every game and are hitting .289 and .286, respectively. Whitehead, the ECU leadoff hitter, leads the team in stolen bases with eight.

The ECU hitters will try to out-slug UAB, which is led by Jamal Austin, Ivan De Jesus and Patrick Palmeiro. Austin is hitting a team-leading .378, while De Jesus is right behind him at .327.

Palmeiro is the team’s main run producer as he has a team-high 17 RBIs.

The Pirates hitters are expected to face pitchers Dillon Napoleon, Ryan Wooley and David Hayes.

Napeleon is 3-1 on the year and holds a 2.13 ERA, while Wooley is 3-3 with a 2.70 ERA and Hayes holds an 0-1 record and a 4.39 ERA.