By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — With the season on the line, Jason DeCaro authored the best pitching performance of his career.
Coming off consecutive tough starts, the junior right-hander was magnificent Saturday as No. 4 North Carolina beat USC 4–0 at Boshamer Stadium before 3,951 fans to put the Tar Heels one win away from their second College World Series in three seasons.
Homers from Colin Hynek and Erik Paulsen backed up that pitching to earn Sunday’s deciding game at 3:06 p.m. on ESPN. Neither coach named a starter afterward, although Forbes said UNC would open with either Caden Glauber or Folger Boaz on the mound.
DeCaro threw a two-hit shutout in a career-long outing and a career-high 117 pitches, giving up two hits and one walk while striking out eight over nine innings as the Trojans were shut out for the first time all season. He threw first-pitch strikes against 23 of 30 batters and never let a baserunner get past first base in UNC’s first NCAA tournament shutout in 15 years.
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“It’s at the top,” Forbes said, when asked where the outing ranked among the best he has seen at UNC. “You’re in an elimination game, and there’s this much on the line.”
Forbes was especially happy for DeCaro, who lasted only 3⅓ innings against Virginia Tech in the ACC tournament and 3⅔ last weekend against East Carolina in his last two starts. But Saturday, he pitched the fourth UNC shutout in the NCAA tournament since the Super Regional format began in 1999.
“Since the day he walked on campus, since the day he trusted us and gave up his high school senior year, he’s been nothing but phenomenal,” Forbes said. “So, I’m most excited for him. That was a big win.”
DeCaro said it took him a little time to settle in before he found the rhythm that carried him through the rest of the afternoon.
“I think probably the third inning,” DeCaro said. “It took me a little bit to settle in today, but after the third inning, I had a couple of quick outs that inning. I came back from the dugout and told [pitching] Coach [Bryant] Gaines that I felt way better right there than I did the first two.
USC coach Andy Stankiewicz said the afternoon started and ended with DeCaro, calling the game all about him.
“He threw a heck of a game, spotted his fastball away, breaking balls, we just couldn’t get through it. It was just a really nice performance by him,” Stankiewicz said. “The good thing is we have [Sunday]; we’ll bounce back, and we’ll be ready to go.”
Carolina (49–12–1) made consistent, solid contact in the first three innings against USC starter Grant Govel, but most were hit right at fielders, with hard shots not finding gaps. Hynek’s solution with one out in the second inning was to find the net beyond left field for his ninth home run, a 395-foot solo shot.
“We knew he’d throw a lot of strikes, knew that he was going to come right after us,” Hynek said. “I was really just trying to be selective in my zone with the heater and get a good swing off on it. Being able to break through first after the game [Friday] felt good, and anytime you have a lead with Jason on the mound, you feel pretty confident that you’re going to win that game.”
For the second time in as many days, UNC squandered a bases-loaded chances, the first with one out in the third inning when Erik Paulsen popped out on a 3-1 pitch, and Hynek struck out swinging. In the fifth inning, a first-and-third, one-out chance ended with Macon Winslow hitting into a double play.
Hynek said the Tar Heels were not dwelling on the missed chances.
“I think just stick with our approach,” Hynek said. “We’ve left quite a few guys on base, but we’re not going to put too much stock into that. We know that we’re talented. We know that we’re more than capable of doing that, and we’re a couple swings away from breaking the game open.”
Govel came out after throwing 83 pitches in five innings, giving up five hits, one walk and striking out three. He had thrown 236 pitches over eight days.
Paulsen lofted the third pitch, a slider from Govel’s relief, left-hander Sax Matson 339 feet just over the left field wall for only the second home run he’s given up this season. It was Paulsen’s 11th homer of the season and second opposite-field shot in as many days. Rom Kellis V’s sacrifice fly later in the inning gave UNC a 3–0 lead.
Winslow made it 4–0 with a sacrifice fly in the seventh. Another inning-ending double play ended a third bases-loaded threat. UNC also left the bases loaded in the ninth inning, but by then DeCaro had long since made the offense’s margin feel safe.
The key, Hynek said from behind the plate, was how often DeCaro immediately put USC in defensive counts.
“It felt like almost every count was 0–1,” Hynek said. “As the game went on, he really was executing to the spot that was called early on. really locked in as the game went on, and, at that point, when J’s on, it’s hard to do anything against him.”
That was USC’s view, too. USC first baseman Adrian Lopez said DeCaro’s ability to get ahead and then expand the zone kept the Trojans from ever getting comfortable.
“I think he got ahead early and often throughout the entirety of the game,” Lopez said. “When a pitcher’s doing that constantly, you’re going up there in a little bit of a swing mode, and he executed a lot of really good pitches. I felt like we put a couple of good swings on him, but it’s just one of those things where he pitched really well, and they played some really good defense.”
One of those defensive plays came in the sixth, when Cooper Nicholson handled a sharply hit ball at third base to help keep USC from gaining any momentum. Forbes praised Nicholson’s work at a position he had to learn after arriving from junior college.
“He’s made some unbelievable plays for us all season,” Forbes said. “That was a huge play right there, to get in there quick and make a good run-through. In a game like this, if that guy bunts for a hit and this guy hits a double, you’re in trouble.”
By the ninth inning, with DeCaro at 110 pitches, the raucous crowd roared when he returned to the mound for the last inning. DeCaro said the moment gave him exactly what he needed.
“That was huge,” said DeCaro, who ended up with 117 pitches, topping his previous high of 111 against Boston College on March 22, 2025. “It gave me a little bit of adrenaline right there. Coach Gaines told me, ‘Use the crowd to your advantage.’ It wasn’t really about executing the pitch; it was just about getting it out there for that ninth inning.”
He did exactly that, finishing off the shutout and forcing a winner-take-all Sunday. DeCaro said the pressure of the moment never felt paralyzing, even with UNC’s season hanging in the balance with every pitch.
“I woke up this morning and thought about it; this could be it,” said DeCaro, whose college career would have been over with a loss. “But I just accepted that, and there’s no reason to think about what happens if we don’t win. I just knew the stakes going into it, accepted it and tried to go out there and execute our game plan.”
USC will try to do what it did four times last weekend at the College Station Regional: survive another elimination game and extend its season one more day. Stankiewicz said the formula will not change.
“It’ll be the same mentality, same attitude,” Stankiewicz said. “We just have to make sure that we’re using the whole diamond and putting pressure on these guys.”
For UNC, though, Saturday belonged to DeCaro, whose right arm and steady command turned a tense super regional into a one-sided afternoon and pushed the Tar Heels within one win of Omaha.
Notes
— On Saturday morning, former William & Mary shortstop Jamie Laskowfski, the CAA Player of the Year ranked No. 39 in the 2027 MLB draft, committed to UNC.
— The other NCAA tournament shutouts by UNC pitchers since the Super Regionals format began in 1999 were by Scott Autrey in a 2002 regional against James Madison, Robert Woodard in the 2006 College World Series against Clemson, and Kent Emanuel in the 2011 College World Series.
— It’s the second consecutive Chapel Hill Super Regional that has gone three games. Last season, Arizona beat UNC 4–3 to advance to the CWS.
— DeCaro’s best previous outing was an eight-inning, five-hit shutout in a 10–0 run-rule win Feb. 20 at ECU.
— USC’s previous lowest scoring output was in a 2–1 March 14 loss at Northwestern and a 5–1 April 7 loss at UC Santa Barbara.
— On Saturday morning, former William & Mary shortstop Jamie Laskowfski, the CAA Player of the Year ranked No. 39 in the 2027 MLB draft, committed to UNC.
— Carolina has one hit in 19 at-bats in the series with runners in scoring position, with 19 left stranded. The Heels are 0-for-7 in the series with the bases loaded.
— Paulson is 9 of 20 with eight RBI and five extra-base hits in five NCAA tournament games.
— Winslow is 2-for-20 in the NCAA tournament.
— Nicholson got hit by a pitch for the 22nd time, the third-most in a season in school history. Jake Schaffner got hit for the 17th time, and Howe also got hit, extending the team program record in a season to 111.
— UNC catcher Hynek threw out Jack Basser trying to steal second in the second inning, with shortstop Schaffner making a nice tag on his back just before Basser reached the second-base bag.
— Second baseman Gavin Gallaher made a tremendous diving play to his right on a fourth-inning ground ball, hopped up and threw out Isaac Cadena. He entered the game with the best defensive runs saved among second basemen in the country at 17.91.
— Carolina is 19–11 in Super Regional play since the format began in 1999.
— USC leads the all-time series with UNC 9–4, including 4–3 in Chapel Hill.
— The Tar Heels will attempt to win a series after losing the opener for the third time this season, after doing it at home April 2–4 against Boston College and April 10–12 against Clemson.
No. 4 UNC 4, USC 0
Chapel Hill Super Regional
No. 4-ranked and No. 5-seed North Carolina (49–12–1) vs. Southern Cal (48–17)
Best-of-3 series
Boshamer Stadium
Game 1: USC 9, UNC 5
Game 2: UNC 4, USC 0; series tied at 1
Game 3: Sunday, 3:06 p.m., ESPN
The Chapel Hill Super Regional winner plays its opener in the College World Series against the winner of the Auburn Super Regional between No. 18 Ole Miss (40–21) and No. 5 Auburn (42–21). Ole Miss won game 1 6–4. Game 2 is at 5 p.m. Saturday (ESPN) and Game 3 is Sunday, if needed.
| 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. 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. 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 | W, 9–2 | vs. High Point | 34–7–1 |
| 23–25 | Thur.–Sat. | W, 3–1; L, 3–1; W, 22–5 (7) | at Duke | 36–8–1, 17–7 |
| 28 | Tuesday | L, 12–2 | vs. Coastal Carolina | 36–9–1 |
| May | ||||
| 3 | Sunday | W, 13–0 (7) (non-conference game) | vs. Duke | 37–9–1 |
| 8–10 | Fri.-Sun. | W, 4–1; W, 12–2 (8); W, 7–3 | vs. Pittsburgh | 40–9–1, 20–7 |
| 12 | Tuesday | W, 13–7 | at UNCW | 41–9–1 |
| 14–16 | Thur.-Sat. | W, 9–4; W, 17–7 (8); L, 7–2 | at N.C. State | 43–10–1, 22–8 |
| ACC tournament | Charlotte | |||
| 22 | Friday | W, 10–4 | Quarterfinal vs. Virginia Tech | 44–10–1 |
| 23 | Saturday | W, 13–5 | Semifinal vs. Pittsburgh | 45–10–1 |
| 24 | Sunday | L, 13–6 | Championship vs. No. 2 Ga. Tech | 45–11–1 |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| Chapel Hill Regional | ||||
| 29 | Friday | W, 8–0 | VCU | 46–11–1 |
| 30 | Saturday | W, 7–5 | East Carolina | 47–11–1 |
| 31 | Sunday | W, 9–3 | East Carolina | 48–11–1 |
| June | ||||
| Chapel Hill Super Regionals | ||||
| 5 | Friday | L, 9–5 | Southern Cal | 48–12–1 |
| 6 | Saturday | W, 4–0 | Southern Cal | 49–12–1 |
| 7 | Sunday | 3:06 p.m. | Southern Cal | ESPN |
| 12–22 | Fri.-Mon | College World Series | Omaha, Neb. | TBA |
Photos courtesy of UNC Athletics
