Tar Heels cruise to victory behind Ramirez triple

Nobody likes to play from behind.

That’s what made Tyler Ramirez’s hit such an important one for the North Carolina baseball team in its 8-1 victory over High Point on Tuesday at Boshamer Stadium.

Ramirez got things going for North Carolina (21-7) in the first inning. With a runner on third base, Ramirez drove the ball to the right-field wall and sprinted to third. The RBI-triple was UNC’s first hit of the game and gave the Tar Heels a lead they would not relinquish.

“Down in Miami, I was putting some good swings on some balls, just nothing to show for it,” Ramirez said.

“So getting back just trying to work hard on my swing and really focus on what the pitcher was trying to do. He was just throwing me sliders and I was trying to get one up in the zone.

“And I got one.”

Ramirez’s hit rattled High Point pitcher Cooper Jeffers, who walked four Tar Heels before retiring from the mound after pitching 1/3 inning in his first loss of the season.

“Their starting pitcher had been good,” Coach Mike Fox said. “His numbers were good. I thought Tyler’s swing of the bat just kind of shut him down a little bit.

“After that, it didn’t seem like he could throw a strike.”

UNC capitalized on Jeffers’ struggles to pressure the Panthers (20-9), who walked home two North Carolina runners. The Tar Heels ended the first inning with five runs.

“We got on base,” Logan Warmoth said. “We drew some walks. We had some good at-bats. And Ram’s hit really got us going.”

When they score in the first inning, the Tar Heels are 15-1 this season. And Tuesday was no exception to the trend.

“It’s definitely easier to play when you’re ahead,” Ramirez said. “Obviously, there’s no pressure, like, ‘Oh, you’ve got to get a big hit here, a bit hit there.’ So it takes that pressure away.”

Fox said the lead helped UNC get comfortable on the mound, allowing pitcher Hunter Williams to throw deeper into the game. While Williams tied his career high of seven strikeouts, he also gave up five walks.

“He’s very fortunate we scored five in the bottom (of the first inning) or he wouldn’t have — he’d have been out of there pretty quickly,” Fox said. “So we’ve just got to keep working with him.”

North Carolina also struggled offensively for the final eight innings. The Tar Heels failed to tack on another run until an RBI-double by Brian Miller in the seventh inning and a pair of unearned runs off a Panthers’ error in the eighth inning.

After the first inning, UNC only tallied five hits. But with High Point unable to close the five-run lead, it turned out to be OK.

“No one wants to play behind,” Warmoth said. “No one likes playing behind. And when you have a five-run lead — even if it’s a two-run lead — it just feels good that you have a little cushion behind you. Makes you kind of loosen up.”

@BlakeR_95

sports@dailytarheel.com