The Diamond Heels had no trouble with Georgia Tech in their ACC Tournament opener Tuesday afternoon in Durham, defeating the Yellow Jackets 11-5 in the first game of pool play. The Carolina victory means Thursday’s contest against No. 2 overall seed Virginia will decide which team advances into the conference semifinals this weekend.

Despite playing without Vance Honeycutt for the fifth straight game, the Tar Heels still provided plenty of offense. Two-out RBI hits from Tomas Frick and Patrick Alvarez contributed to a three-run rally in the first inning, and an RBI double from Hunter Stokely increased the lead to 4-0 in the third.

After the Yellow Jackets got two of those runs back, Carolina answered with three in the sixth and four in the eighth. Second team All-ACC honoree Mac Horvath, perhaps motivated by a perceived first team snub, conquered Durham Bulls Athletic Park’s Blue Monster for his 22nd home run of the season as part of the rally. It was one of 15 hits on the day for Carolina.

Four pitchers contributed to the win, including starter Max Carlson logging four innings while allowing just one run. Ben Peterson pitched the next two frames to earn the win, and Kevin Eaise and Matt Poston combined for the final nine outs. Poston recorded his fifth save of the season in the process.

The win is Carolina’s sixth straight in ACC Tournament play, a streak which dates back to 2021. The Tar Heels are the defending tournament champions and will look to keep that streak alive on Thursday against the Cavaliers. Virginia won two of three games at Boshamer Stadium earlier this season.

 

Featured image via UNC Baseball on Twitter

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