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TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — Those homer-stealing Tar Heels keep snagging the spotlight. When redshirt freshman right fielder Casey Cook reached his arm over the wall and stole a two-run home run from Wright State’s Julian Greenwell in the fifth inning of UNC’s 5–0 Saturday victory in the Terre Haute Regional, it earned him the No. 9 play on the ESPN “SportsCenter” Top 10 Plays segment.
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.
After an impressive performance against No. 11-ranked Virginia last week in the ACC tournament, junior right-hander Jake Knapp will start in Carolina’s NCAA tournament opener on Friday. The Tar Heels (35–22), the No. 3 seed in the Terre Haute Regional, face No. 2-seed Iowa (42–14) at Bob Warn Field at 7 p.m. Friday (ACC Network), with Iowa starting sophomore right-hander Marcus Morgan (4–2, 3.88 ERA).
Coach Hubert Davis officially welcomed four transfers and just-reclassified incoming point guard Elliot Cadeau to the program for next season on Wednesday. Here’s what Davis had to say about those five players:
The ACC announced game times for Carolina’s first three football games, starting with the Sept. 2 opener in Charlotte against South Carolina, which will start at 7:30 and air on ABC.
Ready to take on college basketball, point guard Elliot Cadeau is taking his game to Chapel Hill a year earlier than expected. Cadeau announced Tuesday morning on social media that he is reclassifying: “I would like to announce that I will be joining the team this upcoming fall!”
CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina’s pitching staff has thrown the Tar Heels for a loop many times this season, whether it be short outings from starters or early-season struggles from relievers. After dealing with little stability in the starting rotation most of the season, UNC coach Scott Forbes enters the NCAA tournament confident with the momentum from only two pitchers he knows will start this weekend and a bullpen that has been solid of late.
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.
DURHAM — When North Carolina salvaged a game from its three-game regular-season series with Virginia, the Tar Heels did it by shutting out the Cavaliers in a 7–0 victory. Junior right-hander Jake Knapp started that game for UNC and will be on the mound at 3 p.m. Thursday in the ACC tournament at Durham Bulls Athletic Park when the No. 7-seed Tar Heels meet No. 12-ranked and No. 2-seed Virginia for a spot in Saturday’s semifinals.
DURHAM — When the day comes that UNC coach Scott Forbes can’t write junior Mac Horvath’s name on his lineup card, that will be a tough reality for the third-year head coach. Forbes’ juniors, including catcher Tomas Frick and others, hold a special place for the coach since they were freshmen during his first season when they all had to deal with the challenges of COVID-19 restrictions.
DURHAM — North Carolina took the first step toward repeating as ACC champion and is a win away from a berth in the ACC tournament semifinals. No. 7-seed UNC jumped out to a big lead early and rolled to an 11–5 victory Tuesday over No. 11 Georgia Tech at Durham Bulls Athletic Park in a push for the title unlikely to include star center fielder Vance Honeycutt.
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