For eight and a half innings Friday evening at Boshamer Stadium, the Diamond Heels couldn’t find the lead against Coastal Carolina. But once the bottom of the ninth came and went, the scoreboard had the hosts in front.
Carolina earned a thrilling victory over the Chanticleers in the first game of a big weekend series between the two programs, winning on Mac Horvath’s walk-off single to end the game.
FINAL | The Tar Heels earn the 4-3 win in thrilling fashion!#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/8NGiEmTPc0
— Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) March 5, 2022
Lefty Brandon Schaeffer once again got the call to start on Friday, and although he was largely effective over his 6.1 innings of work, he found himself down after the third inning. A Coastal Carolina sacrifice fly in the first and a home run in the third staked the Chanticleers to a 2-0 lead.
The Tar Heels would answer over the next two frames, getting a run back on an RBI single from freshman star Vance Honeycutt and evening things up in the fifth on a base hit from Hunter Stokely. Honeycutt is now tied with Angel Zarate and Tomas Frick for the team lead in RBI with 10.
Coastal took advantage of a UNC misplay in the field in the seventh, as a double turned into a triple on an error from right fielder Will Stewart. Head coach Scott Forbes pulled Schaeffer in favor of reliever Shawn Rapp, who promptly walked the only batter he faced to put runners on the corners. After Kyle Mott relieved Rapp, Coastal scored the go-ahead run on a gutsy squeeze play to make it 3-2. Mott got out of the jam with two consecutive strikeouts, but the Chanticleer lead would last until Carolina’s final three outs.
After Zarate grounded out to begin the bottom of the ninth, Frick singled up the middle. Forbes sent in the quicker Mikey Madej to pinch-run for his catcher, and the moved paid off immediately. Madej advanced to third on a single from Danny Serretti to put runners on the corners with one out. The red-hot Johnny Castagnozzi, who still leads UNC in batting average, stepped up to the plate and laced a single up the middle to tie the game at 3-3. That paved the way for Horvath, who battled off seven pitches before sending the eighth into shallow left field. Serretti raced around third and beat the throw home to give the Diamond Heels their first walk-off win in two years.
“We have the type of lineup that it’s no big deal if we’re down,” said Forbes. “We’ve got power throughout, we’ve got speed, so scoring a couple of runs isn’t that big of a deal. We just have to keep playing. There’s nothing better than a walk-off at the Bosh.”
Mott was credited with the win after going the remaining 2.2 innings in relief of Schaeffer and Rapp. He faced 10 batters, striking out five and allowing just two to reach base, one of which came on the squeeze play. Schaeffer received a no decision, but still posted a solid line of 6.1 innings, three runs (one unearned) on five hits, and seven strikeouts. He is sporting a 2.60 earned run average through three starts and leads the team with 17 strikeouts.
Carolina is now 9-1 on the young season, its best start through 10 games since 2013. The team will be back in action at Boshamer Stadium Saturday afternoon for the second game of the series with the Chanticleers. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.
Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications
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