By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — Two sights have been rare at Boshamer Stadium this season: Carolina batting in the ninth inning and its offense struggling to score runs.
That will happen in the day-to-day ebb and flow of baseball, but the No. 3 Tar Heels have mostly avoided those lulls this season.
After decisive wins in the first two games to win their marquee series with No. 2 Georgia Tech, the No. 3 Tar Heels couldn’t come up with enough big hits in a 5–2 loss Sunday in the series finale.
More excellent pitching gave UNC (33–7–1, 15–6 ACC) a chance until the end.
“We pitched it well enough and defended well enough to sweep,” UNC coach Scott Forbes said. “We just didn’t get it done offensively today to get that sweep.”
Right fielder Carter French and shortstop Jake Schaffner led off the Carolina ninth with singles to put the potential tying run to the plate. But Gavin Gallaher struck out, Owen Hull lined out, and Macon Winslow flied out to end the threat.
French could feel the energy building from a packed stadium that has seen plenty of late-inning comebacks over the years for Bosh magic.
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“The vibe was good,” French said. “All I’m thinking in that situation is to get on base, and that’s my job at the bottom of the lineup, to get on base for those guys at the top because they’ve been smashing it lately. Jake and I were both trying to do that. The crowd was getting into it, and it felt good. It’s a shame. Tough at-bats happen — it’s baseball. It’s tough that we didn’t get it done. The momentum was definitely there, and if we keep doing the right things, it’s going to happen.”
It was the lowest run output since a 6–1 loss to Boston College on April 2, which is also the last time UNC batted in the ninth inning at the Bosh. The Tar Heels got two runners to second base after the third inning, with Georgia Tech reliever Mason Patel throwing four three-hit shutout innings for his fourth save.
“I thought our bats absolutely stunk, innings five through nine,” Forbes said. “Especially against Patel, who’s throwing one pitch. We’ll get better off that.”
One three-run inning for Georgia Tech (32–7, 16–5) was enough for the nation’s best offense, which was mostly held in check during the series.
Sunday was the Jackets’ biggest run output of the series. They came into the weekend averaging 11.3 runs per game, but only scored 11 in the series. That was their fewest in a series this season (previous low was 19), and it’s only the second time this season that they’ve been held to single-digit runs in three consecutive games.
“I thought we were aggressive on the mound. I thought everybody got after it who went out there,” Forbes said. “They played well enough. [Georgia Tech] played a little bit better than we did [Sunday].”
Two early mistakes by UNC’s Cooper Nicholson proved costly: a first-inning throwing error and oversliding third base to end the second inning.
That error led to an unearned run to give Georgia Tech its first lead of the series. Drew Burress reached on a fielder’s choice and was on second base when Nicholson made a terrific play on Vahn Lackey’s hard-hit infield single. But his throw to first was wide, scoring Burress, who was 2 for 5 after going 1 for 8 in the first two games of the series.
Forbes thought Carolina’s defense, and especially its relief pitching, kept the game within reach even after the early miscue.
“I thought our bullpen was outstanding,” Forbes said. “It gave us a legitimate chance to win the game. That was the biggest plus. In our defense, for the most part, it was really good.”
Schaffner led off the first and third innings with singles and scored UNC’s only two runs. In the first, Owen Hull brought him home on a one-out double to left-center. In the third, two walks and a hit batsman plated Schaffner.
Both starters, Georgia Tech right-hander Jackson Blakely and UNC left-hander Folger Boaz (loser, 3–1), each lasted 2⅔ innings, the second-shortest outings of the season for both.
It came apart for Boaz (4 hits, 4 runs, 3 earned, 4 walks) in the three-run third inning. The first three batters reached, including Jarren Advincula’s RBI single. After Kent Schmit’s RBI double and another run scored on a groundout, Matthew Matthijs relieved Boaz after a walk, inducing an inning-ending groundout.
“You have four walks and five hits early,” Forbes said. “When that’s the case, it’s hard to hold a team like that down. It’s pretty amazing they didn’t score more than they scored, and it’s a credit to the guys that came out of the bullpen.”
Tech tacked on another run in the fifth inning on Caleb Daniel’s pinch-hit, two-out double off Matthijs (2⅓ innings, 3 hits, 1 run, 0 walks, 3 strikeouts).
That relief work, along with a few difficult plays while dealing with the swirling wind, kept the Tar Heels from falling behind by more, even as they labored to string hits together at the plate.
Even with the missed opportunity to complete a sweep, the Tar Heels walked away with the series against one of the sport’s most explosive offenses, a point that mattered to Forbes even as he seethed over a loss he felt was within reach.
“I’m happy that we won the series,” Forbes said. “I’m never going to apologize. I hate losing, it’s who I am, and it’s going to take me at least 24 hours to get over it. But I am happy that we won the series.”
French echoed that balance between frustration and confidence, pointing to the belief the staff has built and the edge the Tar Heels have carried all season.
“The one thing about this program is the coaches instill in us that we’re good enough to beat any team we play,” French said. “With this team, we go out there and we know we can hang with any team we play, and we can dominate them if we play our best game. [Sunday] was disappointing, but winning the series gives us a lot of confidence moving forward.”
Jackson Rose and Camron Seagraves pitched the last four innings and held off the Jackets. Jackson gave up one hit and struck out two in 2⅔ innings, and Seagraves didn’t give up a hit or a walk while striking out two in 1⅓ innings.
Notes
— UNC wraps up the five-game homestand at 6 p.m. Tuesday against High Point. The Panthers (26–13) lost 4–3 Sunday at Charleston Southern. The game will stream on ACC Network Extra.
— Next weekend, the Tar Heels play a three-game series at Duke, beginning at 7 p.m. Thursday (ACC Network). The Blue Devils (22–20, 8–13) have lost four straight games after getting swept this weekend at Boston College.
— Boaz’s shortest outing of the season was March 29, when he gave up seven hits and seven runs in 2⅓ innings of UNC’s 15–10 win at Notre Dame. Blakely’s shortest outing was two innings in a 9–4 loss Feb. 24 against Georgia Southern.
— Georgia Tech snapped a six-game losing streak against UNC, and leads the all-time series 84–78.
No. 2 Ga. Tech 5, No. 3 UNC 2
| Date(s) | Day/ month | Times/ scores | Opponent (current rank) | Record/ TV * |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| February | ||||
| 13–14 | Fri., Sat. | W, 9–4; W, 12–2 (7); W, 4–3 (11) | vs. Indiana | 3–0 |
| 17 | Tuesday | W, 10–0 (7) | vs. Richmond | 4–0 |
| 18 | Wednesday | W, 5–3 | vs. Longwood | 5–0 |
| 20–22 | Fri.-Sun | W, 10–0 (8); L, 10–3; T, 3–3 | vs. East Carolina | 6–1–1 |
| 24 | Tuesday | W, 9–1 | vs. N.C. A&T | 7–1–1 |
| 25 | Wednesday | W, 13–3 (7) | vs. VCU | 8–1–1 |
| 27–28 | Fri., Sat. | W, 16–3 (7); W, 12–2 (7) | vs. Le Moyne | 10–1–1 |
| March | ||||
| 1 | Sunday | W, 21–1 (7) | vs. Le Moyne | 11–1–1 |
| 3 | Tuesday | W, 5–1 | vs. Elon | 12–1–1 |
| 6–7 | Fri., Sat | L, 13–3 (7); L, 9–2; W, 8–7 (12) | vs. No. 10 Virginia | 13–3–1, 1–2 ACC |
| 10 | Tuesday | W, 13–3 (7) | vs. Bucknell | 14–3–1 |
| 13–15 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 8–1; W, 6–2; W, 10–2 | at California | 17–3–1, 4–2 |
| 18 | Wednesday | W, 8–2 | vs. UNCG | 18–3–1 |
| 20–22 | Fri.–Sun. | W, 11–1 (8); L, 2–0; W, 7–6 | vs. Louisville | 20–4–1, 6–3 |
| 24 | Tuesday | W, 9–1 | vs. South Carolina in Charlotte | 21–4–1 |
| 28, 29 | Sat., Sun | W, 6–5; W, 13–7; W, 15–10 | at Notre Dame | 24–4–1, 9–3 |
| 31 | Tuesday | W, 5–4 (14) | vs. Campbell | 25–4–1 |
| April | ||||
| 2–4 | Thur.-Sat. | L, 6–1, W, 5–2, W, 8–7 | vs. No. 24 Boston College | 27–5–1, 11–4 |
| 7 | Tuesday | W, 8–4 | vs. Charlotte | 28–5–1 |
| 10–12 | Fri.–Sun. | L, 9–5, W, 6–4 (14), W, 12–5 | at Clemson | 30–6–1, 13–5 |
| 14 | Tuesday | W, 14–5 | vs. UNCW | 31–6–1 |
| 17–19 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 5–2, W, 14–4 (8), L, 5–2 | vs. No. 2 Georgia Tech | 33–7–1, 15–6 |
| 21 | Tuesday | 6 p.m. | vs. High Point | |
| 23–25 | Thu.-Sat. | 7, 6, 3 | at Duke | Thurs. ACCN |
| 28 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 7 Coastal Carolina | ACCN |
| 29 | Wednesday | 6 p.m. | vs. Queens | |
| May | ||||
| 3 | Sunday | 2 p.m. (non-conference game) | vs. Duke | ACCN |
| 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 | at N.C. State | Thurs. ACCN |
| 19–24 | Tues.-Sun. | ACC tournament | Charlotte | ACCN (final ESPN2) |
| 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. |
- Games not on TV stream on ACC Network Extra unless otherwise note.
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
