'Fight no matter what': UNC softball tops ECU in extras for the first time since 2019

Just win on three.

That was UNC softball’s mindset even after a scoreless first five innings. And the Tar Heels still kept the same attitude tied 6-6 in the bottom of the ninth. 

“The last inning before we went out, we said, 'Just win the game,'" sophomore center fielder Sanaa Thompson said. "We huddled. We always say something. We said, 'Let's just win. Just win on three.' That's exactly what we did.” 

While ECU congregated on the mound during the ninth, the gathering UNC players put their hands into the middle of the circle. They counted down. One. Two. Three.

Win.

They broke apart, and jogged toward their positions. Graduate shortstop Grace Jackson stood ready on second base, after cranking a base-hit and advancing on a wild pitch.

Graduate second baseman Kat Rodriguez stepped up and fired a line drive to center field, sending Jackson all the way home. Rodriguez stood in between first and second and watched Jackson score. She jumped up and down before being swarmed by her teammates.

“That last play, I knew if one of my slappers got on, I knew it was going to be up to me," Rodriguez said. "So I was kind of preparing myself the whole time."

Rodriguez's walk-off single on Wednesday evening allowed UNC to defeat East Carolina, 7-6, in a nine-inning affair at Anderson Softball Stadium. After North Carolina fell behind 4-0 entering the bottom of the sixth, Rodriguez recorded her 64th RBI of the season to secure the victory.

“It was just a hard-fought win," head coach Megan Smith Lyon said. "We fought, we got down and we never gave up. I think that there's something to be said for that. This team is gonna fight no matter what the score is. And we always believe that we could win, and I think you gotta have that belief and we did.”

Despite trailing throughout most of the game and stranding 12 runners on base, UNC softball found a way. A sluggish start eventually gave way to late-game heroics. 

UNC’s offense came to life in the bottom of the sixth. Sophomore catcher Rayna Blackwell doubled to left field, sending first-year pinch runner Ella Fox home. With two bases loaded, senior right fielder Alex Coleman recorded a sacrifice fly to send another runner in. 

The Tar Heels carried this newfound momentum into the seventh, capitalizing on ECU pitching errors. Graduate third baseman Shelby Barbee reached first on a throwing error to push first-year pinch runner Skylar Young home. A wild pitch gave Thompson enough time to score the game-tying run. 4-4.

"The whole team just felt like we were right there," Thompson said. "We had people on base every inning, and we were just waiting for a big hit."

But that didn't come. With two runners on base and two outs, North Carolina had the opportunity to take the lead. Before the Tar Heels could, Coleman grounded out at first.

The game entered extra innings. ECU recorded back-to-back singles with bases loaded in the top of the eighth. The Pirates took a 6-4 lead.

It didn't last for long. 

Thompson found contact again, sending a hit just past the third baseman for a double RBI. Rodriguez and first-year pinch runner Reece Outlaw scored, tying the game 6-6.

“When the game's on the line, you want Sanaa on your team," Smith Lyon said. "She's tough in every aspect, as a base runner, as a defender, as a hitter. And she showed that tonight. She was big."

Junior pitcher Kenna Raye Dark struck out an ECU batter swinging in the top of the ninth. Raye contributed to a three up, three down inning. 

Jackson stepped up in the lead-off spot after junior left fielder Lexie Roberts and Coleman couldn't get on base in the ninth. Jackson delivered with a single. Rodriguez followed with a base hit of her own to seal the game. 

“We all knew that eventually we were going to string hits together and it was just a matter of timely hitting, and it didn't happen until the end,” Rodriguez said. “But we really were just waiting and waiting and fighting and fighting.”

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