Tar Heels Trounce Runnin’ Bulldogs 7-2

The North Carolina baseball team downed Gardner-Webb 7-2 Tuesday night to improve to 31-21 on the season and improve chances of making the NCAA Tournament.

With the loss, the Runnin’ Bulldogs dropped to 23-27 on the season. UNC starting pitcher Taylore Cherry had a lot to do with it. Cherry tossed six shutout innings to stymie the Bulldog bats.

Skye Bolt slammed his second home run of the year to propel the Tar Heels to the victory at Shelby High Schools Veterans Field at Keeter Stadium.

More good news for Carolina came in the form of Wood Myers returning to the lineup after a broken hand on April 25 in the Virginia Tech series. He rebounded nicely with a pair of hits and an RBI.

In total, the UNC offense exploded for 16 hits against a bevy of Gardner-Webb pitchers. The Tar Heels are now 17-2 when scoring at least six runs.

Carolina will now head to Florida Wednesday in advance of a three-game series at Miami starting Thursday. Thursday night’s opener is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. and will be available courtesy of ESPN3 on WatchESPN.com.

FINAL BOX SCORE

http://chapelboro.com/sports/unc-sports/tar-heels-trounce-runnin-bulldogs-7-2/

Diamond Heels Cruise Past Gardner Webb 7-1, Face Terps in Weekend Series

The No. 13 North Carolina baseball team cruised past Gardner Webb 7-1 at Boshamer Stadium Wednesday to improve to 12-4 on the season.

With the loss, the Bulldogs dropped to a 6-10 overall record on the year.

Luis Paula delivered a gem on the mound for Carolina, striking out nine batters over six innings.

The offense was in fine form as well as Alex Raburn smacked his first career home run for the Tar Heels. Korey Dunbar’s early double gave UNC the 3-0 lead. Head Coach Mike Fox’s squad never looked back from there.

Henry Sisson, a sophomore transfer from Davidson, made his first career appearance as a Tar Heel and struck out the only batter he took on.

This weekend, the Tar Heels return to ACC action with a three-game road trip at College Park to take on the Maryland Terrapins. Game one on Friday will start at 6:30 p.m.

http://chapelboro.com/sports/unc-sports/diamond-heels-cruise-past-gardner-webb-7-1-face-terps-weekend-series/

Tuesday Takedown: No. 12 UNC Women Beat Wingate in Final Warm-up

Photo courtesy of GoHeels.com

CHAPEL HILL– The No. 12 UNC women’s basketball team had no problems dispatching Wingate 93-61 in an exhibition contest Tuesday night at Carmichael Arena.

Freshman Allisha Gray led the Tar Heels with 15 points. In all, six players were in double-figures for Carolina.

Wingate actually closed with one point of the Tar Heels at 18-17, but from there, Carolina took over by ending the first half on a 33-10 run.

UNC scored 37 points off 24 turnovers and had an incredible 18-0 edge in fast-break points.

Next up for the Tar Heels is the start of the regular season on Friday at 4:30 p.m. against Air Force at Carmichael Arena.

http://chapelboro.com/sports/unc-sports/tuesday-takedown-no-12-unc-women-beat-wingate-in-final-warm-up/

No. 1 UNC Shuts Out The Citadel

CHAPEL HILL – The Citadel Bulldogs didn’t have to wait long in Wednesday night’s game at Boshamer Stadium to see why UNC is the top-ranked baseball team in the nation. In the bottom of the second, Colin Moran unleashed a grand slam to right field to put the Heels on top of the Bulldogs, 6-0.

PJ Hairston threw the opening pitch of the game, warming up the mound for Hobbs Johnson who, in five innings, allowed just two hits and pitched a season-high nine strikeouts for the Tar Heels.

Sophomore Michael Russell helped tack on another run for Carolina in the fifth inning with an RBI single to send Brian Holberton home.

Russell’s bat was hot again in the bottom of the seventh when he unloaded a three-run homer to left field to give UNC a ten-nothing lead over The Citadel.

The Tar Heels added three more runs in the eighth inning while neglecting to allow The Citadel to score. The Tar Heels won their eighth shutout of the season 13-0.

With the win, Carolina improves to 42-4 overall, still 19-3 in the ACC, while The Citadel falls to 27-19 overall, and remains 14-7 in the SoCon.

The Tar Heels will get a brief break for exams before they suit up on Tuesday, May 7th to take on James Madison at 6 pm in Chapel Hill.

http://chapelboro.com/sports/unc-sports/no-1-unc-shuts-out-the-citadel8624/

No. 1 UNC Baseball Hosts The Citadel

CHAPEL HILL – The No. 1 UNC baseball team steps out of the ACC Wednesday to face a Southern Conference opponent for the fourth time this season when The Citadel makes the trip to Chapel Hill.

The Tar Heels are coming off a 1-1 decision in a series against No. 6 N.C. State that was cut short due to inclement weather Sunday. Game three of the series will not be made up, which marks the second time this season Carolina did not complete a series against a conference opponent. The first one was against Boston College.

The Citadel is second in the SoCon and holds a 27-18 overall record. The Bulldogs are coming off their first loss in 11 games.

First pitch Wednesday night is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. at Boshamer Stadium. It’s the last game until final exams conclude, so there are no games again until next Tuesday and Wednesday when Carolina hosts James Madison.

Tune in to Wednesday’s game live on WCHL and by clicking here immediately following the WCHL Evening News with Aaron Keck.

http://chapelboro.com/sports/unc-sports/no-1-unc-baseball-hosts-the-citadel/