After giving up nine runs in the last two innings, the North Carolina baseball team (45-18, 17-13 ACC) fell to Auburn (37-25, 14-16 SEC) 11-7 in Game 1 of the Chapel Hill Super Regional of the NCAA tournament.
What happened?
The Tar Heels got things started early when a double from first-year Aaron Sabato batted in junior Michael Busch, who earned a walk after leading off for UNC.
After a single and subsequent steal from Danny Serretti, junior Ashton McGee poked a base hit up the middle, allowing Sabato and Serretti to score and giving the Tar Heels a 3-0 lead at the end of the first inning.
In the first four innings, UNC starter Tyler Baum was stellar on the mound, recording six strikeouts and allowing no runs on just one hit. In the fifth, the Tigers broke through, though, answering back with Steven Williams' two-run home run to right field that cut the North Carolina lead to one.
In their next chance at the plate, the Tar Heels stretched the lead back to two when Freeman’s single batted in Sabato, giving the team its first run since the game’s opening inning.
In the bottom of the seventh Sabato tacked on an RBI single, his third hit of the day, to bring the Tar Heel lead back to three.
A disastrous last two innings sank the Tar Heels, however. The Tigers benefitted from a wild pitch and a pair of RBI doubles to score five runs in the eighth, forcing North Carolina to use three different pitchers in the frame. By the time the third out was secured, Auburn had grabbed momentum and a 7-5 lead.
After tagging up from third on a fly ball in the ninth, the Tigers put the nail in the coffin with a two-out, three-run shot from Edouard Julien over the right field wall, giving them an 11-5 lead.
