Tar Heels Snatch Defeat From the Jaws of Victory

Another Saturday, another tragic 11 inning loss for the UNC baseball team.

The Clemson Tigers used a number of miscues by the Tar Heels to score three runs in the bottom of the 11th inning, climbing back from a two-run deficit on their way to a 5-4 victory, clinching the weekend series in the process.

Winning their second straight game, the Tigers improve to 16-14 overall, and 7-7 in the ACC. UNC drops its second straight weekend series, and falls to 6-8 in the league and 17-13 overall.

In a game eerily similar to the game between UNC and Miami last Saturday afternoon, a pitching duel involving Carolina’s JB Bukauskas, this time against Clemson’s Zack Erwin, dominated the early part of the game, before late fireworks took over the show.

A lead-off single by speedy designated hitter Adam Pate to begin the game initially appeared as if it would kick-start a big Tar Heel rally, as a couple of errors by the Clemson infield allowed Pate to eventually come all the way around and score, and made it seem like the Tigers were a little bit rusty coming off of their series opening win on Friday.

After Pate scored, there were runners on first and second with one out, for catcher Korey Dunbar, the hottest hitter in the Carolina lineup as of late. However, Erwin recovered quickly, getting Dunbar to ground into an inning-ending double play, and squashing any hope the Tar Heels had of building an early cushion.

Despite getting just one run out of the early rally, the way Bukauskas was pitching for UNC, one easily could have been plenty.

Through three frames, the freshman had faced the minimum of nine batters, allowing a lone single to Clemson left-fielder Reed Rohlman, but then getting him off the bases immediately by forcing Chris Okey to hit into a double play.

Clawing back in the fourth, though, the Tigers got a lead-off double in the bottom of the fourth from Tyler Slaton, who came home to score two batters later on another double by another guy named Tyler, designated hitter Tyler Krieger. That hit tied the game, and earned the home team a chance to tack on more.

Back to the plate came Rohlman, Bukauskas’ kryptonite all night long. And facing a 1-1 count, the redshirt freshman singled for his second of three hits on the night, giving Clemson the lead as Krieger rounded third and crossed the plate for the second run of the inning.

From then on though, until the extra innings, the two starting pitchers offered up a clinic to all of the fans lucky enough to be watching.

Erwin allowed the Tar Heels to even the affair in the eighth, on a sacrifice fly by Landon Lassiter which followed three singles, but was sensational all night long, working a full nine innings and striking out 11 hitters, while also becoming the second Clemson pitcher in as many nights to throw at least 117 pitches.

Not wanting to be outdone, Carolina’s freshman phenom delivered 8.1 incredible innings of his own, striking out seven, and giving up just five hits and two runs. Bukauskas also nearly matched Erwin’s pitch total, tossing 116 for the night, before being relieved by bullpen stalwart Trevor Kelley, who finished the bottom of the ninth to push the game into extra innings.

Clemson escaped the top of the 10th unscathed, when reliever Taylor Vetzel struck out UNC’s Joe Dudek with two outs, and runners on second and third, to get out of the jam.

Korey Dunbar reached base on a throwing error against reliever Pat Krall (1-1) to begin the 11th, before Adrian Chacon singled, and Eli Sutherland was hit by a pitch, loading the bags with one out for their freshman shortstop, who earned what could have been the most meaningful fielders’ choice of his young career, as he beat out the throw to first, which allowed Dunbar and Chacon to score, snapping the tie and putting UNC ahead by two.

Bullpen woes ultimately would cost the Tar Heels yet again, though, after the embattled Trent Thornton (1-3) inherited two base-runners from Kelley (courtesy of two walks) with one out in the bottom of the final frame. Two more walks and a wild pitch later, the game was within one run, before a pair of miscues in the field, an errant throw to first base by Logan Warmoth at shortstop, allowed the tying, and winning runs to score.

Up Next:

Sunday’s series finale is scheduled to begin at 1 P.M., with the match-up on the mound pitting the Tar Heels’ hard-throwing senior, Benton Moss (4-0, 1.95 ERA) , against the Tigers’ Brody Koerner (3-3, 6.06 ERA).

Game Notes:

• Clemson recorded four double plays on defense, stomping out quite a few Carolina opportunities.
• UNC senior reliever Trevor Kelley has now appeared in 21 of the Tar Heels’ 30 games, a mark that leads the NCAA.
• Bukauskas lowered his ERA to 2.66 on the year.
• In the hit column, the Tar Heels had an 11-5 edge. Skye Bolt led the charge, finishing 3-6.

FINAL BOX SCORE