A familiar bugaboo bit the Diamond Heels yet again Friday night against Duke, as the Carolina bullpen couldn’t hold an eighth-inning lead in an 8-5 loss. UNC entered the top of the eighth leading 5-4, but four Blue Devil runs turned the game around.

The loss overshadowed what had been a fabulous start from pitcher Connor Bovair, who took a perfect game into the fifth inning. Bovair ended up lasting into the top of the sixth while allowing just three runs, though he did leave the mound on the hook for the loss. But the Tar Heel bats picked Bovair up in the bottom of the sixth, scoring four runs on an RBI double, a passed ball and a wild pitch.

UNC’s 5-3 lead was cut to 5-4 in the seventh on a Duke solo home run and then completely erased the next inning. An RBI fielder’s choice — aided by a Carolina throwing error earlier in the inning — and a three-run home run flipped the script and sent Carolina to its sixth loss of the season. In four of those losses, the Tar Heels led in the seventh inning or later.

Carolina will look to clinch the series with the Blue Devils in Saturday’s rubber match, which begins at 2 p.m.

 

Featured image via Tar Heel Blog

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our biweekly newsletter.

Related Stories
‹
No. 9 Coastal Carolina Trounces UNC Baseball at Boshamer Stadium
No. 9 Coastal Carolina scored six runs in the seventh inning to blow open a close game at Boshamer Stadium, and the Chanticleers cruised from there to a 12-2 win against the Diamond Heels. Coastal Carolina opened the scoring quickly against UNC starter Jackson Rose, going ahead 1-0 in the top of the first inning. […]
Offense Explodes as UNC Baseball Blows Out Duke 22-5 in Series Finale
After scoring just four combined runs in the first two games of their series against Duke, the Diamond Heels broke out of their offensive slump with a 22-5, seven-inning win against the Blue Devils Saturday to clinch the series victory. The 22 runs were the program’s most in a single game since 2010 and its […]
Missed Opportunities Cost UNC Baseball in Loss at Duke
The Diamond Heels left 11 men on base on their way to a 3-1 loss at Duke Friday night, evening up the series with the Blue Devils at a game apiece. Duke capitalized on sloppy UNC defense in the first inning. After Carolina’s Ryan Lynch recorded the game’s first two outs, the next two Blue […]
DeCaro Dominates as UNC Baseball Beats Duke in Series Opener
Jason DeCaro allowed just three hits and one run across 7.2 innings in a 3-1 win for the Diamond Heels at Duke Thursday night. 𝐇𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞 1️⃣ Decaro out duels Duke and we open with a 𝙙𝙪𝙗!#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/5LOXcbe51H — Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) April 24, 2026 UNC’s bats struggled themselves for much of […]
UNC Baseball Rolls Past High Point in Midweek Matchup
The Diamond Heels scored three runs in the second inning and six in the fourth on their way to a 9-2 win against High Point at Boshamer Stadium Tuesday night. 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐇𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐧 😤#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/ILzX04V18m — Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) April 22, 2026 Carolina’s nine runs came on just five hits, […]
UNC Baseball Drops Final Game of Weekend Series vs. No. 2 Georgia Tech
The Diamond Heels weren’t able to finish off a series sweep of No. 2 Georgia Tech in Chapel Hill Sunday, dropping the series finale 5-2 after winning Friday and Saturday. The Yellow Jackets led for nearly the entire game, striking quickly in the top of the first and then, after UNC tied it in the […]
UNC Baseball Cruises by UNC-Wilmington for 3rd Consecutive Win
The Diamond Heels scored five runs in the first inning and capitalized on five UNC-Wilmington errors Tuesday night in a 14-5 win at Boshamer Stadium. Sea ya later! Heels put another in the win column!#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/6dj58HWgYR — Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) April 15, 2026 The five-run first inning began after UNC drew three consecutive […]
UNC Baseball Drops First Game, But Still Wins Weekend Series at Clemson
Despite a loss in Friday’s opener and a late deficit in Saturday’s second game, the Diamond Heels came back to win two out of three games and earn the series victory during the weekend at Clemson. It’s the second straight weekend UNC has won a series after dropping the first game, and the first time […]
Chansky's Notebook: The Blueprint
If Michael Malone wants to learn how to utilize the transfer portal, he should look no further than the UNC baseball program.
UNC Baseball Wraps Up Homestand with Win vs. Charlotte
The Diamond Heels scored five runs in the bottom of the second inning on their way to an 8-4 win against Charlotte at Boshamer Stadium Tuesday night. Fun night with the fellas! Downed the 49ers 💥#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/zhtnNhGP7c — Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) April 8, 2026 UNC’s rally started after two consecutive doubles from Owen […]
›