By R.L. Bynum
OMAHA, Neb. — No. 4 North Carolina is three wins away from winning the program’s first national championship after moving to 2–0 for the first time since 2006 and the second time in its history.
As a reward for being the only undefeated team in Bracket 1, the Tar Heels (52–12–1) get two days off before playing at 2:07 p.m. Wednesday. UNC will face the winner of Tuesday’s 2:07 p.m. elimination game between Troy (39–31) and No. 9 West Virginia (46–15).
“I’m glad that I’ve been in that position,” UNC coach Scott Forbes said. “Maybe that can help me prepare and make sure that our guys don’t get too comfortable and understand that our goal is just to play really well on Wednesday. ”
With a victory, UNC would advance to its first CWS Finals since making it there in 2006 and 2007. If the Tar Heels lose that Wednesday game, it would play the same team again on Thursday (either 2:07 p.m. or 7:07 p.m.) in a game to decide the bracket winner.
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The best-of-three championship series starts Saturday at 8:07 p.m. (ESPN), with Game 2 at 1:37 p.m. Sunday (ABC) and Game 3, if needed, at 8:07 p.m. Monday.
To make the finals, Carolina’s Wednesday opponent will have to win three consecutive games starting Tuesday, the latter two against the Tar Heels.
That gives UNC a significant advantage in managing pitchers. The survivor of Tuesday’s game will have more limited options, while the Tar Heels have numerous directions they could go since they’ve only used three pitchers in Omaha.
Forbes could start junior right-handed ace Jason DeCaro (11–2, 2.31 ERA) on four days’ rest after throwing 106 pitches in Friday’s 6–2 win over Ole Miss, but that might not be the best option, given the Tar Heels’ situation, with the CWS Finals starting Saturday.
He could start freshman right-hander Caden Glauber (11–0, 2.13 ERA, 5 saves), who got the save in Sunday’s 5–2 win over West Virginia, but only threw nine pitches in that game and threw only 33 pitches in Friday’s first game.
UNC might opt to start junior left-hander Folger Boaz (3–3, 7.03 ERA), who hasn’t pitched since going 3⅓ innings in the 9–3 Chapel Hill Regional win over East Carolina on May 31. Another possibility would be freshman left-hander Jackson Rose (4–0, 2.35 ERA), who hasn’t pitched since going one inning in the 4–3 Super Regionals-clinching victory over USC on May 7.
If UNC can advance without DeCaro pitching, he could go into Game 1 of the finals on seven days’ rest.
College World Series
At Charles Schwab Field Omaha in Omaha, Neb.
Bracket 1
No. 5-seed and No. 4-ranked North Carolina (52–12–1), No. 16-seed and No. 9-ranked West Virginia (47–16; eliminated), Troy (39–32; eliminated) and No. 23-ranked Ole Miss (41–23; eliminated)
Bracket 2
Oklahoma (42–22), No. 3-seed and No. 3-ranked Georgia (53–14; eliminated), Oklahoma (41–22) and No. 7-seed, No. 6-seed and No. 6-ranked Texas (46–15; eliminated), No. 6-seed and No. 6-ranked Texas (46–16; eliminated) and No. 16-ranked Alabama (42–21; eliminated)
Pool play
All listed times are ET
June 12 results
West Virginia 7, Troy 5
North Carolina 6, Ole Miss 2
June 13 results
Oklahoma 9, Alabama 0
Georgia 7, Texas 1
June 14 results
Troy 12, Ole Miss 8; Ole Miss eliminated
North Carolina 5, West Virginia 2
June 15 results
Texas 14, Alabama 2; Alabama eliminated
Oklahoma 4, Georgia 3
Tuesday’s results
West Virginia 12, Troy 0; Troy eliminated
Georgia 2, Texas 0; Texas eliminated
Wednesday’s results
North Carolina 12, West Virginia 7; West Virginia eliminated
Oklahoma 11, Georgia 4; Georgia eliminated
CWS Finals
(Best-of-3 series)
North Carolina vs. Oklahoma
Game 1 (UNC home team): Saturday, 8:07 p.m., ESPN
Game 2 (Oklahoma home team): Sunday, 2:37 p.m., ABC
Game 3 (UNC home team): Monday, if needed, 7:07 p.m., ESPN
Times in brackets are Central Time, with games starting 7 minutes after the listed times.
| 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 |
| 30–31 | Sat.–Sun. | W, 7–5, W, 9–3 | East Carolina | 48–11–1 |
| June | ||||
| Chapel Hill Super Regionals | ||||
| 5–7 | Fri.–Sun. | L, 9–5, W, 4–0, W, 4–3 | Southern Cal | 50–12–1 |
| College World Series | Omaha, Neb. | |||
| 12 | Friday | W, 6–2 | No. 18 Ole Miss | 51–12–1 |
| 14, 17 | Sun., Wed. | W, 5–2, W, 12–7 | No. 9 West Virginia | 53–12–1 |
| 20–22 | Sat.-Mon | 8:07, 2:37, 7:07 (if needed) | CWS Finals vs. Oklahoma | ESPN, ABC, ESPN |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
