The North Carolina softball team (7-4, 0-0 ACC) charged from behind late to come back and defeat North Carolina A&T (6-5, 0-0) 10-2 in its home opener of the 2022 season.
What happened?
Both teams played a very defensive game in the beginning, as there were only two runs by the Aggies by the fifth inning stretch. Nevertheless, the Tar Heels didn’t stop fighting and put major numbers on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning with a total of 10 runs.
Junior shortstop Destiny Middleton kicked it all off by scoring off a wild pitch with a slide into home base. The very next pitch brought another run in for UNC as graduate transfer Sarah Jubas ran home to score after sophomore pitcher Kianna Jones singled.
With only one out in the inning so far, junior infielder Katie Perkins hit a grounder, loading the bases as junior Abby Settlemyre jogged to home plate and brought in another run for the Tar Heels. After a pitching error by N.C. A&T, the Tar Heels advanced once again, allowing both senior catcher Taylor Greene and sophomore midfielder Skyler Brooks to score, making it 5-2 in North Carolina’s favor.
UNC’ scoring run didn't stop, however, as Jubas brought the score to 7-2 with a double, allowing RBIs by the Tar Heels as their lead grew more and more.
To seal the deal, Jones hit a beauty of a home run, and two more runs followed her back to home plate, bringing the crowd to their feet and ending the game in a 10-2 run-rule victory for the Tar Heels, all thanks to that huge run in the bottom of the fifth. Although the Aggies fought hard in the beginning and came out with a bang, North Carolina was able to defend its home field with a victory.
Who stood out?
While the entire North Carolina team fought until the end to overcome N.C. A&T, Jones and Jubas were the strongest offensively, as Jubas was one of the first to score in the game and Jones finished the job with a definitive home run.
