In thrilling fashion, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish rallied from six runs down to defeat the No. 24 UNC baseball team 8-7 on a walk-off home run by pinch-hitter Kyle Richardson–in a game where the ball just could never seem to stay in the park–with the teams combining for seven long balls on the day.
Losing all three games in South Bend drops the Tar Heels to 13-13 in the ACC with a 30-19 record against all competition, while Notre Dame jumps to 15-12 in league play and 33-18 overall.
Sunday also marks the second time the Fighting Irish had to rally from three or more runs behind to defeat the Tar Heels this weekend.
Just as they did yesterday in the first game of the doubleheader, the Tar Heels homered in the top of the first inning to put the pressure on the home team.
Skye Bolt hit a grand slam for UNC in the second inning to put the Tar Heels ahead 6-0. (UNC Athletics)
Sophomore right-fielder Tyler Ramirez followed up Skye Bolt’s walk with a deep drive over the wall in right center-field off Notre Dame starter Nick McCarty, spotting Carolina a two run lead before the Fighting Irish had seen a chance at the plate.
Benton Moss, the outstanding UNC senior starting pitcher, then worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the first to set up his team with a chance to extend their lead and take control of the game early.
Three walks by McCarty in the very next frame loaded the bases for Skye Bolt, who took full advantage of his opportunity–blasting a grand slam for his second home run in as many days.
Given a six run lead, everything seemed to be going in the Tar Heels’ favor, but Notre Dame first baseman Zak Kutsulis had other ideas.
A walk by Ryan Lidge and a single from Robert Youngdahl put two men on for Kutsulis in the bottom of the second, with the first baseman crushing a 1-0 pitch from Benton Moss over the fence–immediately cutting UNC’s cushy lead in half.
After the Tar Heels added one more tally in the third on a deep sacrifice fly by Joe Dudek which scored Korey Dunbar all the way from second base, their bats fell flat–getting no hits from the fourth through sixth innings– as the Fighting Irish chipped away at the lead with a few more home runs.
The Irish rally continued in the bottom of the fourth, when Kutsulis caught hold of another pitch from Moss for his second home run of the day, this one a solo shot with nobody on base.
More of the same ensued two innings later–in the Notre Dame half of the sixth–as Robert Youngdahl smashed a solo home run of his own, inching his team just a little bit closer.
Benton Moss pitched well, but allowed the Fighting Irish to swing their way back into the ball game. (UNC Athletics)
Carolina head coach Mike Fox finally pulled the plug on Moss in favor of reliever Trent Thornton after the senior had finished the sixth inning having given up five hits and five runs, with all those runs coming by way of the long ball.
Thornton worked a perfect seventh inning, but like Moss, found trouble keeping the ball inside the park in the eighth and ninth.
A lead-off home run in the bottom of the eighth from Fighting Irish sophomore Cavan Biggio made it a one run UNC lead, and then Kyle Fiala tripled in the next at-bat before eventually scoring to tie the game heading into the final frame.
Failing again to provide a spark was the heart of the Carolina batting order–Skye Bolt, Tyler Ramirez, and Korey Dunbar–who each were set down by a pair of Notre Dame relievers in what turned out to be the Tar Heels final chance at the plate.
Fittingly enough the game would end on yet another home run, as Kyle Richardson took Thornton deep with two outs to seal the sweep for the home team–marking the first time all season long the Tar Heels have been swept.
Up Next:
A chance to recover awaits the Tar Heels on Tuesday night when they return home to Boshamer Stadium to take on the UNC-Wilmington Seahawks.
Game Notes:
- Notre Dame has now swept two top 25 opponents this season, as they also swept Florida State earlier in the year.
- The six-run comeback is also the biggest of the year for the Fighting Irish.
- Skye Bolt now has eight home runs this year for UNC, which leads the team.
- Cavan Biggio, who homered for the Irish in the eighth, is the son of former Houston Astro and MLB Hall-of-Famer Craig Biggio.
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