UNC baseball head coach Mike Fox–with his Tar Heels mired in a slump that has lasted throughout the month of April–challenged his team to be tougher.
After a back-and-forth affair which lasted nearly four and a half hours on Tuesday, they showed their coach’s message was taken to heart–ending UNC-Wilmington’s 12-game win streak with a 10-9 victory at Boshamer Stadium courtesy of freshman Kyle Datres’ walk-off walk.
Facing a 3-2 count with the bases loaded and two outs, the Pennsylvania native held strong and allowed UNC-Wilmington reliever Jared Gesell do the work for him.
Datres watches the game’s final pitch go by. It was his second walk-off RBI this season. (Joe Bray/ UNC Athletics)
“Bases loaded, all the pressure’s on him,” Datres said after the game. “He has to throw it in the zone. I saw him struggling, so I went up there with a patient approach and made him have to bring one to me.”
Now 27-15 this season, the Tar Heels desperately needed to pick up a quality win to bolster their NCAA Tournament resume.
They needed it so badly, in fact, that their coach stepped out of character to make a bold statement before the game.
“I went in the locker room, and I said ‘To heck with it, I need to tell them how it really is,'” Fox said. “We gotta win.
“As a coach you really gotta be careful saying that,” he continued. “But I mean, that’s the position that we’re in.”
Fox also had to set a player aside and let him know he wouldn’t be in the starting lineup.
Yep. Datres. The one that ended up winning the game.
“I called him in the locker room–and I don’t hardly ever do this–but I challenged our team about being tougher and then he’s not in the lineup,” the coach said.
“He’s one of our toughest players, both mentally and physically,” Fox added. “So I called him in and I said ‘Hey, listen I want you to know you’re not in there because I think you’re better right now off the bench for us.'”
Armed from the top-down with extra motivation from its coach, UNC–which scored just seven runs all weekend while getting swept at Wake Forest–racked up six runs in the first inning against UNC-Wilmington starter Justin Crump.
The Seahawks (27-10) and their explosive offense weren’t going to let the nation’s longest winning streak end that easily, though. Facing 6-foot-6 righty Jason Morgan they stormed back for a six-run inning of their own in the third.
Once the score was 6-4, the Tar Heels sent Brett Daniels to the mound for Morgan, but Joe Bertone tied it up by sending Daniels’ first pitch over the wall in left-center field for a two-run bomb.
Both teams traded runs the rest of the way, with UNC-Wilmington eventually taking a 9-8 lead heading into the bottom of the eighth inning.
That’s when Datres was able to make his mark.
Adam Pate capped off UNC’s six-run first inning with an RBI single, as the Tar Heels were able to end UNC-Wilmington’s 12-game win streak. (Joe Bray/ UNC Athletics)
Entering as pinch hitter, the Pennsylvania native tied the game in the eighth when his RBI single brought home Tyler Ramirez.
Left in to play third base, Datres would again get his name called in crunch time–only on this occasion it was the bottom of the ninth, there were two outs and the bases were loaded.
UNC-Wilmington reliever Jared Gesell worked a 3-2 count against the freshman, but Datres remained calm and watched ball four sail outside.
Moments later, an elated Tar Heel bench stormed the field to mob the man who started the game amongst them.
Now UNC will look to find consistency over the final month of the regular season, and if they do–it’s quite likely the team will single out Tuesday night as a turning point.
In a must-win game, where toughness was needed more than ever to get the job done, the Tar Heels were able to take care of business.
Up Next:
UNC continues its seven-game homestand at the Bosh with a game Wednesday against Campbell. First pitch is set for 6 p.m.
It is also the Tar Heels’ off-week from ACC play, which means they will not play on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
Game Notes:
- UNC-Wilmington was fortunate to hold UNC to just one run in the bottom of the fourth, benefiting from a rare “5-4-2” double play. After recording the first out, second baseman Brian Mims threw home for a tag on UNC’s Logan Warmoth, who was ruled out despite appearing to reach home plate in time.
- The Tar Heels are now 21-1 this season when scoring at least six runs.
- UNC was perfect on stolen base attempts in the game–going 7-for-7, with six different players stealing at least once.
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