The UNC softball team (5-4, 4-1 ACC) struggled against No. 4 Alabama (13-0) on the second day of the Crimson Classic in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
In the first game, Alabama’s Lexi Kilfoyl pitched a no-hitter, and the Crimson Tide won, 2-0. UNC junior Hannah George pitched her second complete game of the season in the close loss.
In the second game, UNC again struggled to get on base, and Alabama scored four unearned runs in the fourth inning, which led to a 4-0 Crimson Tide victory. Fifth-year pitcher Brittany Pickett led the Tar Heels in the second game, as she pitched a complete game and was one of two UNC players to get a hit in the game. Pickett has won four out of her five complete games so far this season.
UNC will look to finish the tournament strong on Sunday, Feb. 28, at 11:30 a.m. with a game against the Memphis Tigers (0-4).
Michael Meares, staff writer
Indoor track and field ACC Championship: UNC men, second; UNC women, ninth
The UNC men’s and women’s track and field teams placed second and ninth, respectively, at the ACC Indoor Track and Field Championships this weekend.
There were strong performances from the men’s team in the final events on Thursday and Saturday. Troy Yearwood's distance of 21.08 meters, and James Joycey's distance of 20.41placed second and third, respectively, in the weight throw on Thursday.
On Saturday, Brandon Tubby and Thomas Ratcliffe finished first and second, respectively, in the mile run with both of them breaking the four-minute mark. Daniel McArthur won his third consecutive ACC indoor title in the shot put with a distance of 20.69 meters.
Isaiah Palmer finished second in the 400-meter and third in the 200-meter with times of 45.97 and 20.96. The men’s 4x400 relay team, consisting of Palmer, Ryan Saint-Germain, Craig Saddler II and Onyedikachi Ohia-Enyia took home first place on Saturday.
There were some standout performances on the women’s team as well. Anna Keefer earned second place in the 200-meter with a time of 23.56. Emmeline Fisher finished fifth in the mile, Jill Shippee finished fifth in the weight throw, Sydney Banks finished fourth in the high jump and Paige Hofstad finished sixth in the 5000 meters.
Isaiah Lucas, staff writer
Men's swimming ACC Championship: Sixth place
The UNC men's swimming team jumped out to a strong start on the first day, ending Wednesday first overall among the 12 teams with 304 points.
The Tar Heels continued to shine throughout the second day of the championships, putting up solid scores in the freestyle relay and trials. Though North Carolina was able to continue its solid results, the team dropped from first to fourth in a close overall standings.
The third day of the championships were a falling point for the Tar Heels, where they began to post mediocre results compared to their early success. North Carolina registered relatively low success in individual events with the exception of the 100-yard breaststroke. In the team 400-yard medley relay, the Tar Heels got back on track, finishing fifth to keep their overall ranking at five, only dropping one spot from the day before.
In similar fashion to the third day, the Tar Heels continued to struggle in individual events on the fourth day, and only accounted for an eighth-place finish in the final relay of the meet. In the final day of competition, the Tar Heels dropped from fifth place to sixth, ending their best run in the tournament since 2016 and placing them in the middle for the ACC standings.
Junior Anton Down-Jenkins helped keep North Carolina in the top half of the ACC competitors with his first-place finishes in both the 1-meter and 3-meter dives as the Tar Heels' top athlete.
Ike Bryant, staff writer
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