The Diamond Heels scored eight runs in the bottom of the fifth inning and crushed No. 5 seed Clemson 14-4 in the ACC Championship Game Sunday afternoon in Durham. The win clinches UNC’s ninth ACC Tournament title, second under fifth-year head coach Scott Forbes and third in the last six tournaments.

 

The eight-run inning came after Carolina had already built a 4-0 lead after scoring in each of the first three innings. The offensive avalanche began with a two-run blast from Hunter Stokely to right field – his first home run in the month of May – but UNC was far from done. Tyson Bass lifted a towering two-run shot to center field two batters later, and after a Kane Kepley RBI single scored another run, Jackson Van De Brake dropped the hammer: a 408-foot, three-run rocket over the “Blue Monster” in left field of Durham Bulls Athletic Park. It marked the first time all season UNC had hit three home runs in the same inning.

UNC’s lead grew to as large as 14-0 after two more runs scored in the bottom of the sixth. There was no 10-run rule in effect, so the game lasted the full nine innings.

That run support was more than enough for Carolina’s “pitch by committee” approach for its third game in three days. Freshman Ryan Lynch made his first career start and logged four innings while tossing a career-high 83 pitches. His finest moment came in the top of the fourth, when – with the lead still just 4-0 – Clemson loaded the bases with nobody out. Head coach Scott Forbes stuck with Lynch, and the freshman delivered, striking out the next two batters and inducing a groundout to end the inning unscathed. It was his last action of the afternoon.

“I thought the story of the game was Ryan Lynch,” Forbes said afterward. “Going out there as a true freshman, pitching like that, and then loading the bases and not giving one run. That’s hard to do against a team like Clemson. I felt like all the momentum, when we got out of that inning… instantly went to our dugout.”

Olin Johnson, Folger Boaz and Cameron Padgett combined to work the final five innings, with Johnson earning his second win of the season. It was the sophomore’s first game action since April 29.

UNC’s 14 runs scored are its most in an ACC Tournament game in Forbes’ five seasons as head coach. Sophomore catcher Luke Stevenson was named tournament MVP after hitting home runs in Carolina’s wins against Boston College and Florida State earlier in the tournament. He scored two runs Sunday against Clemson.

Van De Brake finished the day 2-6 with five RBIs and a run scored, while Gavin Gallaher and Alex Madera each had three hits. Every UNC starter scored at least one run, with Tyson Bass holding the team lead with three.

“It feels great to jump on a team like that,” Gallaher said. “We knew that even the four runs early weren’t gonna be enough.”

Sunday’s win snaps a three-game losing streak for UNC against Clemson, though the two teams hadn’t met since 2023. It’s also UNC’s fifth at a neutral site this season. When combined with Carolina’s 12 wins in true road games, its 17 wins away from Boshamer Stadium are its most in a single season since 2017.

Carolina will enter the NCAA Tournament at 42-12 overall. UNC will receive its tournament bid during the Selection Show, which airs Monday at 12 p.m. on ESPN2.

 

Featured image via UNC Baseball on Twitter

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