Baseballs continued to fly out of Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta on Saturday, but this time it was Georgia Tech that would get the last laugh against UNC.

Junior first baseman Kel Johnson–a Second Team Preseason All-American–crushed a walk-off two-run homer off of Tar Heel reliever Rodney Hutchison in the bottom of the 12th inning to give the Yellow Jackets a 4-2 victory, and even up the weekend series.

Johnson’s blast was the third home run of the game for either team, which continued a trend started on Friday when the squads combined for five long balls in UNC’s 6-5 series-opening win.

The Tar Heels (14-5, 3-2 ACC) tallied both of their runs on Saturday with a pair of solo shots.

Freshman designated hitter Ashton McGee recorded three of UNC’s seven hits by himself on Saturday. (Jeffrey A. Camarati/ UNC Athletics)

Freshman first baseman Michael Busch put UNC ahead 1-0 in the top of the third inning with the first home run of his career, while senior leftfielder Tyler Lynn homered for the second straight day in the top of the sixth–tying the game at two apiece in the process.

In between the home runs, however, was some fantastic pitching by each side.

Georgia Tech (12-5, 2-3 ACC) used a combination of five different pitchers to hold the Tar Heels to just seven hits over the 12-inning game–three of which came from freshman designated hitter Ashton McGee.

UNC, meanwhile, received another stellar performance from Luca Dalatri as he continues to make the transition from high school to college look like a walk in the park.

The 6-foot-6-inch New Jersey native tossed eight innings, while striking out seven Yellow Jackets and surrendering just five hits.

Dalatri ran into his only major trouble in the bottom of the third inning, when Georgia Tech broke through with an RBI double from Wade Bailey, and followed it up with a sacrifice fly from Trevor Craport.

Prior to Johnson’s game-winner in the 12th, each team went scoreless for over five innings thanks to some phenomenal work from the bullpen arms.

Now the Tar Heels will head into Sunday’s series finale having gone back and forth with the Yellow Jackets for two straight days, neither team able to assert any sort of overall dominance.

Up Next:

Sunday’s game is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m., with the Tar Heels likely to start junior Jason Morgan on the mound.

Game Notes:

  • UNC went 3-for-16 at the plate with runners on base, and failed to tally a single hit with two outs.
  • Through 19 games in 2017, the Tar Heels have hit 18 home runs. They hit just 32 long balls across 55 games in 2016.
Related Stories
‹
Georgia Tech Shuts Out Tar Heels In Series Finale
After following up Thursday’s loss to Georgia Tech with a dominating 8-0 victory on Friday, the No. 4 Tar Heels had the tables turned on them Saturday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium–falling 6-0 to the Yellow Jackets in the series’ rubber match. UNC (19-4, 6-3 ACC) was able to muster up just four hits all day […]
UNC Baseball Wins Series, Splits Doubleheader With Yellow Jackets
In some exciting ACC action on Saturday, the 22nd ranked UNC baseball team split a doubleheader with their Coastal Division foes, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Georgia Tech rallied from a five run deficit to take the first game 6-5 on Thomas Smith’s walk-off single, before Benton Moss pitched Carolina to a 5-1 victory in […]
Dunbar's Ninth Inning Homer Leads UNC Past Georgia Tech
The UNC baseball team came into Friday’s series opener at Georgia Tech needing to make a statement. Having slipped to 22nd in the polls, and lost five of their past seven games, North Carolina got what they were looking for when catcher Korey Dunbar played hero, hitting a two-run homer in the top of the […]
Tar Heels Hope Atlanta Will Bring New Life
During head baseball coach Mike Fox’s 17 year tenure at UNC, there’s been one letter many have come to associate with the program: the W. That’s why five losses over the past seven games by Fox’s 22nd ranked Tar Heels, paired with a sub-standard 12-8 overall record (3-3 in conference), have raised some eyebrows as […]
Diamond Heels Stage Late-Inning Rally, Steal Series Win at Georgia Tech
Trailing 4-0 against Georgia Tech entering the sixth inning on Sunday, the No. 11 UNC baseball team took advantage of some untimely mistakes and rattled off seven consecutive runs on the way to a 7-4 victory in Atlanta. The win also clinched the series for the Tar Heels (15-5, 4-2 ACC) who have now won each […]
Bukauskas K's 14 as UNC Holds On to Take Series Opener at Georgia Tech
Week after week, UNC junior right-hander JB Bukauskas is proving why MLB scouts feel he should be one of the first players chosen in this June’s draft. His latest trick was to strike out a career-high 14 hitters on Friday, as the Tar Heels hung on for a 6-5 victory over the Georgia Tech Yellow […]
Opportunistic Yellow Jackets Knock Off No. 4 UNC Baseball
Thursday at the first annual Bark at the Bosh night—where fans at Boshamer Stadium were allowed to bring their dogs to watch some baseball—the No. 4 Tar Heels couldn’t quite find their own bark in a 3-2 loss to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the series opener. UNC—now 18-3 this year, with a 5-2 […]
Georgia Tech Stymies Carolina, Claims 2-1 Series Win
The No. 12 North Carolina baseball team dropped an ACC series to Georgia Tech 2-1 over the weekend to fall to 15-8 on the season and 5-4 in ACC play.
Diamond Heels Meet Yellow Jackets for Three-Game Set in Chapel Hill
The No. 15 North Carolina baseball team, 14-6 on the season and 4-2 in conference, opens up a three-game ACC series with 13-8 Georgia Tech Friday at 5 p.m. at Boshamer Stadium.
Georgia Tech Takes Regular Season Finale Over UNC Baseball
The UNC baseball team dropped its regular season finale on Saturday afternoon in Atlanta, falling to Georgia Tech by a score of 10-6. It didn’t take long for the Yellow Jackets (28-21, 21-15 ACC) to pick up where they left off on Friday night with the bats, scoring three times in the second inning, six […]
›