By R.L. Bynum

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina’s pitching staff has thrown the Tar Heels for a loop many times this season, whether it be short outings from starters or early-season struggles from relievers.

After dealing with little stability in the starting rotation most of the season, UNC coach Scott Forbes enters the NCAA tournament confident with the momentum from only two pitchers he knows will start this weekend and a bullpen that has been solid of late.

When the Tar Heels (35-22) begin play against Iowa (42–14) in the Terre Haute Regional at 7 p.m. Friday (ACC Network), only two of the three junior right-handers who they have depended on to start most of the season — Max Carlson (4–2, 5.97 ERA) and Jake Knapp (5–3, 4.89 ERA) — are expected to start in the double-elimination event.

Who starts Friday and Saturday will depend on matchups as Forbes learns more about the Hawkeyes.

“I made up my mind as soon as [Connor] Bovair struggled,” Forbes said of the third junior right-hander, who gave up five runs and five hits in ⅔ of an inning in Saturday’s 10–4 loss to Clemson in the ACC tournament semifinals. “I’m not even going to look at the game three starter.”

Knapp is the only UNC pitcher who has exclusively started and was outstanding against N.C. State in the 12–2 win May 13 (6+ innings, five hits, two runs, three strikeouts) and against Virginia in Thursday’s 10–2 win (5⅔ innings, five hits, one earned run, five strikeouts).

Carlson (top photo) made three relief appearances before a triumphant return to the rotation in the 9–3 win May 12 over N.C. State (7⅔ innings, three hits, two runs, four strikeouts).

Bovair (4–4, 5.57 ERA) assumed the No. 1 starter spot when Carlson went to the bullpen, but Forbes said he’ll work out of the bullpen the rest of the season after not making it out of the first inning in two of his last four starts.

Going with two main starters in the postseason isn’t anything new for Carolina.

That worked fine for a pair of Tar Heels teams that made the College World Series: 2011 with Patrick Johnson (13–2, 2.47 ERA) and Kent Emanual (9–1, 2.33 ERA), and 2018 with Cooper Criswell (6–2, 2.99 ERA) and Austin Bergner (7–3, 4.25 ERA).

“I feel like Knapp is throwing extremely well and Carlson has been throwing much, much better. And we have some other options once we get to game 3,” said Forbes, hinting that fifth-year right-hander Kevin Eaise (3–3, 3.37 ERA, five saves) could be a candidate to start.

After all 13 of his appearances as the Ivy League Pitcher of the Year last season at Penn were as a starter, all but one of his 26 appearances as a Tar Heel have been out of the bullpen. Eaise struck out four in 1⅔ innings to finish Saturday’s loss to Clemson.

“He’s got a history of starting. I feel like he’s been throwing better,” said Forbes, adding that Eaise has had to learn how to come out of the bullpen. “What you do as a coach is, you go by each game. OK, here’s where we are. And then you might hold that guy out, if you can, knowing that he’s going to start game three.”

In Eaise’s lone start — against NCAA tournament team and Conference USA champion Charlotte — he gave up five hits, two runs and a walk with eight strikeouts in 6⅔ innings in a 16–3 road victory.

The bullpen performed well during the ACC tournament.

The four P’s have been outstanding in relief for the Tar Heels of late: junior right-handers Ben Peterson (3–0, 5.03 ERA) and Matt Poston (3–3, 1.77 ERA, five saves), sophomore left-hander Dalton Pence (4–2, 3.67 ERA) and freshman right-hander Cameron Padgett (2–1, 5.67 ERA).

Pence earned his first save of the season in the Tar Heels’ 10–2 win over Virginia with 3⅓ two-hit, shutout innings with no walks and three strikeouts.

Added to that, a pair of freshmen have come on of late in right-hander Matthew Matthijs and left-hander Kyle Percival, who showed mastery of left-handers last week, including striking out Clemson star Caden Brice twice.

“We feel good about where our arms are,” Forbes said. “We feel like we’re deep enough to win a regional. And we have two starters that we like, so I’m excited to see how they do.”

UNC will face a challenging lineup, led by two sophomore All-Big Ten first-team selections in outfielder Sam Peterson (.331, 11 homers, 20 steals) and designated hitter Keaton Anthony (.389, nine homers, .701 slugging percentage).

Good pitching will be essential against an Iowa staff deep in mound talent, led by a pair of sophomore right-handers: first-team All-Big Ten 6–4 fireballer Brody Brecht (5–2, 3.86 ERA with 57 walks and 101 strikeouts in 70 innings) and Marcus Morgan (4–2, 3.88 ERA, 26 walks and 67 strikeouts in 60⅓ innings).