In the first game of the Chapel Hill Regional of the NCAA Tournament, the North Carolina baseball team (43-17, 17-13 ACC) defeated UNC-Wilmington (32-30, 12-12 CAA) 7-6 on Friday in thrilling fashion.
Trailing by a run entering the bottom of the ninth, the Tar Heels used a solo home run from first-year Aaron Sabato to tie the game. Then, with the bases loaded, first-year Danny Serretti travelled too far down the base path and found himself trapped in a rundown. When UNCW's throw to home sailed over the catcher's head, Serretti slid headfirst for the winning run, giving UNC a walk-off win to begin NCAA Tournament play.
What happened?
The Tar Heels got on the board early, when junior Ike Freeman hit a single up the middle with two outs in the first inning to bat in junior Michael Busch.
In the second inning, UNC added to its lead when junior Dylan Harris doubled and redshirt junior Dallas Tessar blasted a ball over the left field wall, giving the Tar Heels a 3-0 lead. The home run was the first of the season for Tessar, and just the third of his career.
The Seahawks got their first run of the day in the fourth inning, when Brooks Baldwin tagged up on a deep fly ball from Noah Liles.
In the sixth, the Seahawks used a three-run inning to take their first lead of the game. First, a solo shot from Noah Bridges with one out cut the UNC advantage to one. Then, when UNC starter Tyler Baum stepped off the mound for sophomore Joey Lancellotti, the Seahawks hit a double to the warning track to take a 4-3 lead.
The Tar Heels took the lead back in the seventh inning thanks to a pair of RBI singles from Freeman and Martorano.
After a Sabato walk, Freeman hit a ball in the gap to send Sabato home and tie the game at four. Then, after Ashton McGee struck out swinging, Martorano hit a ball up the middle, allowing Freeman to score standing up and giving UNC a 5-4 lead.
