Lassiter, UNC baseball walks off against Elon

For a while, it appeared Landon Lassiter wouldn’t have a chance.

But his teammates gave him one.

Bunt single. Two bases reached on Elon errors leading to a run. An intentional walk and an RBI sac fly.

Lassiter watched as the North Carolina baseball team erased a two-run in the bottom of the ninth inning to tie the game at 4-4 with one out.

The Tar Heels gave Lassiter another chance at the plate.

The sophomore third baseman approached the batter’s box with the bases loaded and soon saw three balls light up on the scoreboard. Just one strike.

He stepped away from the plate for a meeting with head coach Mike Fox. But little was said. The plan was to ice the pitcher, just as football coaches do to kickers. Because one pitch outside separated UNC from the win.

But Lassiter swung, fouling off two straight pitches.

The count full, he already knew what he had to do.

“I’m just trying to do anything I could to hit it in the outfield,” he said. “A sac fly wins it. And I was just trying to get a pitch to hit it out there.”

And with the pinging sound of Lassiter’s bat, the UNC third baseman seized the chance to erase his season full of struggles at the plate, seven scoreless innings on the night and the disappointment of a Tuesday rainout that postponed UNC’s long-awaited matchup with rival N.C. State at Durham Bulls ballpark.

The ball dropped right over the Elon center fielder, scoring junior Michael Russell to give Lassiter a walk-off hit and the Tar Heels a 5-4 win against Elon Wednesday.

“We were all excited last night to play N.C. State,” said pitching coach Scott Forbes. “I could tell on the bus our guys were ready to play. And then I had a feeling this game might be rough to start as far as having the energy. But somehow we found a way to win the game.”

There’s no doubt Lassiter left the field the hero after being swarmed by a cleared dugout as he rounded first celebrating.

But every Batman has a Robin. And on Wednesday, Lassiter’s Robin was freshman Brandon Whiteford.

After five scoreless innings, Fox knew his team needed to get things going. But to do so he turned to an unusual suspect, placing his faith in the freshman Whiteford, who had no hits on the season in just three at-bats before the game.

‘“Whiteford, grab a bat. Start swinging. You’re going to lead off next inning,”’ Whiteford recalled of his coach’s words. “I got off the bench, took my sweatshirt off and got ready to hit. That’s about it. You just have to stay focused, stay within yourself and do your job.”

The freshman went in to pinch hit at the top of the sixth, drawing a walk, advancing to second on a wild pitch and scoring a run.

His night was over with just a circle around the bases. But he’d done his job, sparking his team to cut the deficit 3-2, leaving no doubt in his mind the comeback was in full effect.

Whiteford gave the team hope that became contagious, carrying over to each player and into the ninth inning.

Then they gave Landon Lassiter a chance, who seized it — down to the last pitch.

sports@dailytarheel.com