UNC Baseball Uses Second Walk-Off of Weekend to Sweep Coastal Carolina

The Diamond Heels capped off a fun weekend of baseball at Boshamer Stadium Sunday afternoon with their second walk-off in three days. A bases-loaded single in the tenth inning did the trick for Carolina, who swept aside Coastal Carolina to move to 11-1 this season.

What a way to end the series!! pic.twitter.com/WwukzbIk5f

— Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) March 6, 2022

As was the case in Friday’s game, Carolina fell behind in the early innings after starter Shaddon Peavyhouse gave up a Chanticleer home run in the top of the third. But the offense got Peavyhouse off the hook in the bottom of the frame, tying the game on an RBI single from Tomas Frick. The sophomore catcher has been one of many reasons for Carolina’s strong start, as he now leads the team in RBI with 12.

The call-and-response scoring continued after a Coastal sacrifice fly in the fifth gave the Chanticleers the lead again, but a Hunter Stokely RBI single in the sixth ensured that lead would last just an inning.

Controversy clouded the game in the eighth, as Carolina looked to have dodged a bullet by throwing out a Chanticleer runner at home plate. However, umpires reviewed the play and called obstruction on the play, negating an outfield assist from Angel Zarate and giving Coastal a 3-2 lead. Head coach Scott Forbes was ejected for the first time in his career after arguing the play.

But UNC once again had an answer, as designated hitter Alberto Osuna stepped to the dish in the bottom of the inning and lifted a towering fly ball over the center field fence to even the score at 3-3. It was Osuna’s third home run of the season.

Caden O’Brien entered in relief in the top of the ninth and shut down any hopes of another Coastal rally, but needed a leaping catch from Zarate in left field to escape the inning. Though UNC put runners on first and second with two outs in the bottom of the inning, Mac Horvath popped out, sending the Diamond Heels to extra innings for the first time this season.

O’Brien ran into trouble in the 10th, walking two batters and recording just one out, but Connor Ollio promptly got out of the jam with two outs on three pitches.

After Stokely singled in the bottom of the 10th, the speedy Reece Holbrook entered as a pinch-runner. Holbrook did his job, stealing second and advancing to third on a wild pitch with just one out. Will Stewart walked, then Holbrook attempted to come home on a Vance Honeycutt squeeze bunt. Coastal played the bunt well, throwing out Holbrook at home and keeping the game tied. But that meant Stewart and Honeycutt now occupied first and second base. The Chanticleers intentionally walked Zarate to load the bases and bring a force out into play, which brought up backup catcher Eric Grintz in just his second at-bat of the season. Grintz was only in the game because Frick was pinch-run for in the bottom of the ninth.

Grintz made the move pay off in the end, blooping a single into shallow left field to score Stewart and secure the second series sweep of the season for Carolina.

“I was super confident there,” Grintz said after the game. “I trusted all my preparation and all my hard work, that if the guy gave me a pitch to hit, I was going to put a good swing on.”

Carolina is now 11-1 through 12 games, though all 11 wins have come at Boshamer Stadium. The Diamond Heels will try for their first road win of the season on Tuesday, as the team travels up to Virginia to take on No. 20 Liberty. The Flames took both games of a home-and-home series with UNC last season.

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications

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UNC Baseball Uses Second Walk-Off of Weekend to Sweep Coastal Carolina

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