No. 21 UNC baseball defeats South Carolina, 13-8, in midweek game

On Tuesday night, North Carolina baseball (19-6, 4-5 ACC) took down South Carolina (17-9, 1-5 SEC) in an offensive slugfest, 13-8, at Truist Field in Charlotte, North Carolina.

After a scoreless offensive frame from UNC, the Gamecocks started loud in the bottom of the first, using back-to-back solo home runs from center fielder Nathan Hall and right fielder Ethan Petry to secure an early 2-0 lead. Junior right-handed pitcher Cameron Padgett made his third start for the Tar Heels but was quickly relieved by first-year right-handed pitcher Walker McDuffie.

“It’s an unbelievable ballpark [and] an unbelievable city,” head coach Scott Forbes said. “We know we’re going to have a ton of Tar Heels here.”

In the second inning, North Carolina answered with a solo home run of its own from graduate right fielder Tyson Bass. South Carolina responded in the bottom half, tallying another run with a sacrifice fly.

The offensive battle continued in the third, as sophomore catcher Luke Stevenson blasted a home run to right-center field to cut the deficit back to one. Subsequently, a two-out rally produced a two-RBI single from Bass after the Tar Heels loaded the bases. UNC led 4-3 after three innings.

First-year left fielder Sawyer Black joined the home run party in the following frame, hitting his second of the year and the game's fifth, adding one run to the North Carolina lead. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Olin Johnson continued to keep the Gamecock bats at bay after their hot start, retiring six of his seven batters faced. 

“The story of the game for us on the mound was Olin Johnson,” Forbes said.

Both teams went scoreless in the fifth.

UNC loaded the bases again in the sixth. Following a Stevenson RBI walk, sophomore third baseman Gavin Gallaher hit a line drive into center field, plating two more and extending the Tar Heel lead to five.

In the bottom half, a leadoff walk ended Johnson’s day. He finished with three hitless innings and two strikeouts. Junior right-handed pitcher Matthew Matthijs entered in relief and surrendered the initial base runner and three runs of his own after a Henry Kaczmar double. UNC's lead shrunk to 8-7 after six.

After North Carolina turned to first-year right-handed pitcher Ryan Lynch, South Carolina used a Beau Collins two-out double under the glove of a diving Black to tie the game in the seventh. 

Stevenson didn’t let the tie last long, as his second towering home run of the evening put UNC back ahead 10-8 in the eighth. The rejuvenated North Carolina offense continued to add to its lead, stretching it back to five behind singles from Bass and graduate designated hitter Sam Angelo.

“When it’s tied like that, we’re just trying to get baserunners,” Stevenson said. “So all I was trying to do is put a good swing on it, and I did.”

Leading 13-8, Lynch and sophomore left-handed pitcher Folger Boaz closed the door on the Gamecocks in the eighth and ninth, securing the victory for North Carolina.

UNC tallied four home runs and 12 total hits. Stevenson and Bass both notched four RBIs.

The Tar Heels will head back to Chapel Hill for a conference series against Miami, beginning Friday at 6 p.m. at Boshamer Stadium.

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