The Diamond Heels’ season will live on for at least one more day.

Carolina staved off elimination by defeating Wright State 5-0 Saturday afternoon in the loser’s bracket of the Terre Haute regional of the NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels will now face the loser of Saturday night’s Indiana State-Iowa game on Sunday at noon.

Starting pitcher Max Carlson delivered perhaps his best game of the season when it mattered most, shutting down the Raiders over 6.2 scoreless innings. He allowed just three baserunners (one hit, two walks) and struck out five to earn the crucial win. Dalton Pence took over for Carlson in the seventh and fired 2.1 perfect innings to shut the door and eliminate Wright State from the region.

Carolina needed every bit of Carlson’s magic through the early innings, as an RBI groundout from Mac Horvath in the third was all the offense could muster. The score remained 1-0 until the seventh inning, when Horvath finally gave UNC some breathing room with a three-run home run, his 23rd of the season. An RBI single from Johnny Castagnozzi one inning later put the icing on the cake.

The win means UNC has won at least one NCAA Tournament game in all three seasons under head coach Scott Forbes. Carolina will look to extend its season once more on Sunday when it faces either regional host Indiana State or Iowa. Should the Tar Heels win that game as well, they would play another later that day against the winner of tonight’s game between the Sycamores and Hawkeyes.

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications/Andy Mead

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