TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — A year after working out of the losers’ bracket to win the Chapel Hill Regional, North Carolina couldn’t replicate that magic but made things interesting. UNC rallied from a three-run eighth-inning deficit after No. 2 seed Iowa seized control with Brennen Dorighi’s three-run homer in the fifth inning. The Hawkeyes earned their second victory over UNC in the Terre Haute Regional, ousting the Tar Heels with a 6–5 13-inning victory Sunday afternoon at Bob Warn Field.

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — Swamp time was the right time for slugger Mac Horvath and North Carolina. Before the game, he had the words “SWAMP TIME!” written on the tape that was around his left arm, and “Donkey” — as his teammates call him — proceeded to deliver a key three-run homer in the Tar Heels’ 5–0 victory Saturday over Wright State at Bob Warn Field to stay alive in the Terre Haute Regional.

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — A microcosm of why Carolina has struggled at times this season played out in the Tar Heels’ NCAA tournament opener, with the lack of length from starting pitchers and hits with runners in scoring position. Combining those with dominant pitching from Iowa right-hander Marcus Morgan (5–1) and struggles at the top of the Tar Heels’ order dumped them into the losers’ bracket of the Terre Haute Regional but not before making some ninth-inning noise.

DURHAM — North Carolina’s pitching didn’t hold up in the early innings in a 10–4 loss to Clemson in the ACC tournament semifinal on a rainy Saturday afternoon at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The Tar Heels (35–22) were bounced after winning their two pool-play games, but they couldn’t defend their tournament title from a year ago.

If rain washes out the rest of the ACC tournament, even Carolina’s big victory over Virginia probably isn’t enough for the Tar Heels to be an NCAA tournament regional host. UNC (35–21) is up to 27th in the RPI after that 10–2 victory over No. 12-ranked Virginia on Thursday, but only 16 teams are hosts.

DURHAM — If the bad weather forecast for Saturday and Sunday is accurate, the outlook for North Carolina winning its second consecutive ACC title isn’t good. If the league cannot complete the ACC tournament at Durham Bulls Athletic Park, it will award the championship to the team with the best record in the tournament. The title will go to the highest-seeded team if there’s a tie.

DURHAM — Neither Carolina nor Virginia started their top pitchers, but junior Tar Heels right-hander Jake Knapp performed like an ace on a day when UNC poured on the offense. Knapp struck out five in 5⅔ innings as No. 7-seed UNC beat No. 12-ranked and No. 2-seed Virginia 10–2 to earn a spot in Saturday’s ACC tournament semifinals to snap the Cavaliers’ 10-game win streak.