By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — Many faces have changed, but three familiar, dependable returnees led No. 11 North Carolina early, while newcomers helped turn opening night into a blowout.
Right-handed pitchers Jason DeCaro and Walker McDuffie were on top of their games, as was junior captain Gavin Gallaher, in the Tar Heels’ 9–4 victory over Indiana on a chilly Friday at Boshamer Stadium.
For Coach Scott Forbes, the opener carried its usual electricity.
“Opening day — it’s always special,” Forbes said after the win before a crowd of 3,168. “No matter what, you’re just gonna not sleep great the night before opening day. That’s a good thing, because you’re just excited.”
Gallaher (above photo), now a captain who has shifted from third to second base, delivered a clutch two-run triple in the fifth inning and had two of the Tar Heels’ eight hits. DeCaro (1–0) struck out seven in five two-hit shutout innings, and McDuffie got out of a big sixth-inning jam.
“You know what you’re going to get with those guys, and it’s good to watch them,” Forbes said. “Just like everybody else, those guys have worked hard to get better, and they’ve gotten better.”
Newcomers Colin Hynek (2 for 4, two-run double) and Jake Schaffner (triple, 2 RBI) ignited the decisive six-run sixth inning.
Carolina’s offense took time to break through as Indiana starter Tony Neubeck, a crafty left-hander, threw four one-hit innings, but Forbes wasn’t surprised by the early grind.
“In a perfect world, as I tell them all the time, when it’s easy, it’s easy,” Forbes said. “It’s more gratifying when it’s hard. We knew he had a lot of good stuff, and he had a lot of ride on that fastball.”
Indiana turned to reliever Reagan Rivera in the fifth, and the Tar Heels pounced. After a walk and two singles loaded the bases, Schaffner’s sacrifice fly to right plated the game’s first run. Gallaher followed with his second career triple, ripping a bullet down the left-field line that left fielder Cole Decker bobbled off the wall.
Schaffner called Gallaher’s triple one of the night’s defining moments.
“My favorite moment of the game was Gavin’s first triple,” Schaffner said. “The place was rocking.”
Schaffner said the approach stayed simple once the lineup saw Rivera.
“We’d really just try to stick to our approach,” Schaffner (below photo) said. “He was throwing that good cutter down. So, just seeing him up, making him work, making him throw different pitches that he usually doesn’t throw. Those two big innings really helped us out.”
Hynek, a DH who will get plenty of games at catcher, and Schaffner ignited the decisive six-run sixth inning, as UNC chased Rivera after six runs on three hits and two errors.
Schaffner said the big inning snowballed quickly once the Tar Heels kept extending at-bats.
“I think we did a great job of taking what we got,” he said. “Not swinging at too many balls, taking our walks, and then when we had the chance to execute and drive the runners in, we did a good job at that.”
Freshman right-hander Caden Glauber took over for UNC in the sixth and walked the bases loaded. He was inches away from escaping before Decker’s two-out bouncer took a bad hop off the second-base bag, bounding to shortstop Schaffner’s left, to score two runs. McDuffie came on and stranded two Hoosiers baserunners, striking out Ayden Crouse swinging.
“I’ve got to make that play,” Schaffner said of that wayward grounder. “So, it’s just a stupid mistake by me. I kind of got excited to make the double play.”
DeCaro, who threw 90 pitches, struck out three consecutive batters in the fourth inning after issuing two walks.
“Jason DeCaro set the tone for us,” Forbes said. “When you have a guy like that on the mound that’s a veteran, it allows everybody to slow down a little bit and realize, hey, we’re in for a battle right here.”
Junior right-hander Boston Flannery pitched 2⅓ innings (1 hit, 3 walks, 2 strikeouts) before senior right-hander Cameron Padgett recorded the final two outs. Forbes said Flannery’s performance is a sign of what’s ahead.
“I think Boston Flannery is a dude for us this year,” Forbes said. “He’s completely bought in to UNC, and he’s gonna reap those rewards.”
Flannery, now leaning heavily on his sinker, said the last year has been about consistency and trusting the work.
“I completely scrapped the four-seam [fastball], and went primarily to the sinker,” Flannery said. “I think it’s been a really big helper for me.”
Schaffner noticed how much that pitch helped the defense behind him.
“He throws that nasty sinker, so a lot of soft contact,” Schaffner said. “It makes our life a lot easier.”
Flannery also embraced the emotion of pitching in front of a Boshamer crowd that stayed loud deep into the night.
“Just incredible, absolutely incredible,” he said. “We had the best fans in the world. They were sticking around even when we were really beating them.”
Newcomers also showed off their defense.
Catcher Macon Winslow, a Duke transfer, picked off a baserunner at first base in the first inning. Third baseman Cooper Nixon, an Iowa Central Community College transfer, made a tough short-hop play in the fourth and a hustle stop near the mound in the sixth. Freshman right fielder Tyler Howe added a sliding catch down the line.
Forbes summed up the opener with the perspective of a coach who has seen plenty of them, but still appreciates what they mean.
“Just thankfulness,” Forbes said. “I never dreamed I would be the head coach at the University of North Carolina. Have an unbelievable staff. I just love it now more than I ever have, excited about this season.”
Notes
— The rest of the series will be played as a noon Saturday doubleheader because of the Sunday forecast for rain, marking the second consecutive season with a Valentine’s Day doubleheader.
— Junior UNC right-hander Folger Boaz (3–0, 3.90 ERA last season) opposes Indiana senior right-hander Jackson Bergman (0–0, 2.25 ERA, no starts) in the opener. Sophomore right-hander Ryan Lynch (5–1, 2.93 ERA) will start the second game, but Indiana hasn’t named a starter.
— This was the first meeting between the programs.
— Carolina has won all 16 opening series since Boshamer Stadium was renovated in 2009, and hasn’t lost an opening series since falling to Seton Hall in 2002.
— Indiana is opening against an ACC team for the third time in five years after facing Clemson in 2022 and Duke in 2024.
— UNC is 90–44–2 in openers and has won seven of the last eight.
— Forbes is 4–2 against the Big Ten.
— It was Indiana’s sixth consecutive opening-day loss.
No. 11 UNC 9, Indiana 4
| Date(s) | Day/ month | Times/ scores | Opponent (current rank) |
|---|---|---|---|
| February | |||
| 13 | Friday | W, 9–4 | vs. Indiana |
| 14 | Saturday | noon doubleheader | vs. Indiana |
| 17 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Richmond |
| 18 | Wednesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Longwood |
| 20–22 | Fri.-Sun. | 4 (Greenville; ESPN+), 2 (DBAP), 2 (CH) | vs. East Carolina |
| 24 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. N.C. A&T |
| 25 | Wednesday | 4 p.m. | vs. VCU |
| 27–28 | Fri., Sat. | 4 p.m., 2 p.m. | vs. Le Moyne |
| March | |||
| 1 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. Le Moyne |
| 3 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Elon |
| 6–8 | Fri.-Sun. | 4, 2, 1 | vs. Virginia |
| 10 | Tuesday | 4 p.m. | vs. Bucknell |
| 13–15 | Fri.-Sun. | 9, 5, 4 | at California |
| 18 | Wednesday | 4 p.m. | vs. UNCG |
| 20–22 | Fri.-Sun. | 8, 2, 1 Friday on ACCN | vs. No. 8 Louisville |
| 24 | Tuesday | 6:30 | vs. South Carolina in Charlotte |
| 27–29 | Fri.-Sun. | 6:30, 3, 1 | at Notre Dame |
| 31 | Tuesday | 8 p.m., ACCN | vs. Campbell |
| April | |||
| 2–4 | Thur.-Sat. | 6, 6, 2 | vs. Boston College |
| 7 | Tuesday | 7 p.m., ACCN | vs. Charlotte |
| 10–12 | Fri.-Sun. | 6, 2, 12:30 (Sunday on ACCN) | at No. 19 Clemson |
| 14 | Tuesday | 6 p.m. | vs. UNCW |
| 17–19 | Fri-Sun. | 6, noon, 1 (Saturday, Sunday on ACCN) | vs. No. 5 Georgia Tech |
| 21 | Tuesday | 6 p.m. | vs. High Point |
| 23–25 | Thu.-Sat. | 7, 6, 3 (Thursday on ACCN) | at Duke |
| 28 | Tuesday | 7 p.m., ACCN | vs. No. 6 Coastal Carolina |
| 29 | Wednesday | 6 p.m. | vs. Queens |
| May | |||
| 3 | Sunday | 2 p.m., ACCN (non-conference game) | vs. Duke |
| 6 | Wednesday | 6 p.m. | vs. Winthrop |
| 8–10 | Fri.-Sun. | 6, noon, 1 | vs. Pittsburgh |
| 12 | Tuesday | 6 p.m. | at UNCW |
| 14–16 | Thurs.-Sat. | 7, 6, 1 (Thursday on ACCN) | at No. 17 N.C. State |
| 19–24 | Tues.-Sun. | ACC tournament (ACCN, ESPN2 for final) | Charlotte |
| 29–31 | Fri.-Sun. | NCAA Regionals | Campus sites |
| June | |||
| 5–7 | Fri.-Sun. | NCAA Super Regionals | Campus sites |
| 12–22 | Fri.-Mon | College World Series | Omaha, Neb. |
Photos courtesy of UNC Athletics
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