By the time UNC freshman Michael Busch stepped to the plate with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Florida State was on the verge of completing a combined no-hitter.

Instead, Busch singled home Kyle Datres to help force extra innings–where the eighth-ranked Tar Heels put together three runs in the 11th frame on the way to a 5-2 victory over the No. 12 Seminoles in Tallahassee.

Florida State (18-10, 6-5 ACC) made a whopping six errors in the game, one of which started off the ninth inning and ultimately led to a sacrifice fly from UNC’s Brandon Riley–making the score 2-1 prior to Busch’s clutch single.

Seminole starting pitcher Tyler Holton was nearly untouchable over the first seven frames, striking out eight Tar Heels without allowing a single hit.

He was pulled after walking UNC catcher Cody Roberts to begin the eighth inning. By then, his pitch count had risen to 109.

Roberts then played the role of hero in extra innings for the Tar Heels (21-6, 8-3 ACC), as his RBI single off reliever Drew Carlton in the 11th gave UNC its first lead of the night–a feat that once seemed completely inconceivable.

The sixth, and final, Florida State error–a misplay at shortstop–helped put the pieces in place for Roberts’ RBI as Riley advanced to second base.

Carlton then threw a wild pitch, which set up a sacrifice fly from Tyler Lynn.

The next man up, junior centerfielder Brian Miller, followed Lynn’s at-bat with an RBI double–extending UNC’s lead to the final margin.

All the late-game drama overshadowed fantastic pitching performances from the Tar Heel trio of Gianluca Dalatri, Brett Daniels and Josh Hiatt.

Dalatri allowed just two runs and five hits over 6.2 innings in yet another fantastic start, while Daniels struck out three Seminoles during his five-out relief stint.

Hiatt–the closer who normally comes on during save situations–was called upon to record the final out of the ninth inning with the game-tying run on second base. He then shut Florida State down in each of the extra frames.

This extra work earned the freshman sensation his first career pitching victory, and clinched yet another ACC series victory for head coach Mike Fox and the Tar Heels–their fourth straight to open the conference season.

Up Next:

UNC will close the series against Florida State on Sunday, with first pitch scheduled for 12:30 p.m.

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