A walk-off sacrifice fly from Gavin Gallaher in the bottom of the 11th inning gave the Diamond Heels a 5-4 win against No. 24 Coastal Carolina at Boshamer Stadium Tuesday night, preserving UNC’s perfect start to the 2025 season.

The thrill of victory came despite the agony of a blown ninth-inning lead, as UNC’s Matthew Matthijs inherited a 4-3 lead but allowed the tying run to score on a single. Coastal Carolina then nearly took the lead in the top of the 11th against reliever Cameron Padgett: following a single, the Chanticleers’ Wells Sykes sent a ball down the right field line and into the corner. Right fielder Tyson Bass slipped as he tried to field the ball, allowing the Coastal Carolina runner to round third base and head for home. But Bass recovered in time to find infielder Jackson Van De Brake, who fired a perfect relay throw to catcher Luke Stevenson. Stevenson applied the tag in the nick of time, and the game stayed tied at 4-4.

In the bottom of the 11th, UNC loaded the bases after a single from Van De Brake – who then advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt and to third on a wild pitch – and walks to Kane Kepley and Luke Stevenson. That brought up Gallaher, who skied a 3-1 pitch deep into center field, well deep enough to score Van De Brake from third base.

Padgett earned his second win of the season with his two innings of scoreless relief. Folger Boaz, Walker McDuffie, Ryan Lynch and Matthijs combined to work the first nine innings, with the starter Boaz giving up the first three Chanticleer runs over four innings. At the plate, freshman Perry Hargett continued his hot start to the season with a two-RBI triple in the fourth inning.

The win is UNC’s first via walk-off this season. The 13-0 Diamond Heels will put their perfect record on the line once again when they host Stanford for the first ACC series of the season this weekend. First pitch of Friday’s opening game is scheduled for 4 p.m.

 

Featured image via UNC Baseball on Twitter

Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.

Related Stories
‹
UNC Baseball Beats UNC-Greensboro for 6th Consecutive Win
The Diamond Heels scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh inning on their way to an 8-2 win against UNC-Greensboro at Boshamer Stadium Wednesday afternoon. It’s Carolina’s sixth consecutive win. Tar Heels!! What is your profession??#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/R10awQaW0N — Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) March 18, 2026 The five-run inning broke open what had […]
UNC Baseball Dominates in 3-Game Road Sweep at Cal
The Diamond Heels played dominant baseball in a three-game road sweep of Cal in Berkeley during the weekend. UNC never trailed in any of the three games. Friday’s opening game saw Carolina ace Jason DeCaro silence the Bear bats in the early innings. Freshman Tyler Howe provided the game’s first offense with an RBI single […]
UNC Baseball Beats Bucknell in Chapel Hill; 8th Run-Rule Win This Season
The Diamond Heels scored eight runs in the bottom of the seventh inning on their way to a 13-3 win against visiting Bucknell at Boshamer Stadium Tuesday. Carolina won the game in seven innings via the 10-run rule, marking the teams eighth win by way of the run rule already this season. 𝐀 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐃𝐮𝐛 […]
UNC Baseball Drops ACC Opener vs. Virginia in Blowout Fashion
The Diamond Heels were on the wrong end of the 10-run rule Friday, as visiting Virginia dominated UNC 13-3 in a game ended after seven innings. The Cavalier bats jumped all over UNC starting pitcher Jason DeCaro, bashing six hits and scoring five runs in just three innings. Only two of those Virginia runs were […]
UNC Baseball Beats Elon at Boshamer Stadium; ACC Play Next
It took all nine innings this time, but the Diamond Heels were still able to comfortably beat Elon 5-1 at Boshamer Stadium Tuesday afternoon. Light work of the fire birds 🔥#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/HVWEAqyNhK — Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) March 3, 2026 Carolina’s offense was nowhere near its historic level showcased in its weekend sweep of […]
UNC Baseball Rides Hot Bats to Home Sweep vs. Le Moyne
The Diamond Heels scored a combined 49 runs across a three-game sweep of Le Moyne at Boshamer Stadium during the weekend. All three games were ended early via the 10-run rule. Friday’s opening game saw Carolina score five runs in the first inning thanks to a sacrifice fly, a bases-loaded walk and a bases clearing […]
UNC Baseball Wins Midweek Matchups vs. North Carolina A&T, VCU
The Diamond Heels had no trouble in a pair of midweek games against North Carolina A&T and VCU. Carolina outscored the opposition 22-4 on its way to wins in both matchups at Boshamer Stadium. Tuesday against the Aggies, George Mason transfer Owen Hull had the best game of his young UNC career with three hits […]
UNC Baseball Drops Second Game of East Carolina Series; Final Game Declared a Tie
The Diamond Heels fell in the second game of this weekend’s three-game series against East Carolina and ended Sunday’s rubber match after five innings due to weather conditions. As the score was tied 3-3 at the time of the stoppage, the game will officially go down as a tie. Saturday’s game at Durham Bulls Athletic […]
DeCaro Dazzles as UNC Baseball Beats East Carolina in Series Opener
Jason DeCaro threw a complete-game shutout and the UNC lineup banged out 12 hits as the Diamond Heels rolled past East Carolina 10-0 in Greenville Friday night. The game was ended after eight innings via the run rule. Sprinkled in a 𝘿𝙐𝘽 💪#GoHeels x @WellsFargo pic.twitter.com/1a6yCgvcLv — Carolina Baseball (@DiamondHeels) February 21, 2026 Carolina provided […]
Chansky's Notebook: An Early Test
One of the most unique series on the college baseball calendar gets underway tonight as UNC and ECU open their three-ballpark series.
›