Tar Heels Continue to Overcome Offensive Woes in Series Opening Win

The North Carolina Tar Heels won again on Thursday night as they survived a late charge by their archrivals, 4-3. It was the 13th time in 30 games this season where UNC scored five or fewer runs. Thanks to outstanding pitching, they are 8-5 in those games and have won back-to-back ACC series despite scoring less than five runs in five of those six games against Boston College and Miami.

They won again despite offensive woes as the top six hitters in the order combined to go 1-for-19 with seven strikeouts against Duke. In the 3rd inning, the Tar Heels loaded the bases with nobody out after Alex Madera and Jackson Van De Brake led off with back-to-back singles and Perry Hargett was hit by a pitch. With the top of the order coming up, UNC was on the verge of a big inning. Kane Kepley was hit by a pitch, making it 1-0, but then Owen Proksch was able to strike out UNC’s three best hitters– Luke Stevenson, Hunter Stokely, and Tyson Bass– to retire the side and limit the damage to just one run. 

“We have the momentum,” Head Coach Scott Forbes said post-game. “All of a sudden they strike us out three times in a row. We leave the bases loaded and they just grab it really, really fast, go up two to one.”

Duke did take the momentum and punish UNC for an error when Tyler Albright blasted a two-run shot to right center, but that was really the only blemish for Jake Knapp on the night. According to Forbes, the right-handed ace didn’t have his best stuff last night, but was able to get under the barrel of Duke hitters just enough. Knapp went seven innings once again and allowed just the one earned run and tied a season low with just two strikeouts. 

UNC has relied on their outstanding pitching staff and opportunistic scoring this season and are 23-7 on the year, having won all but two weekend series to this point. And yet they’re 12th or worse in the ACC in runs scored, batting average, and slugging. The Tar Heels are finding ways to grind out wins in other ways, which could pay dividends down the line if the bats get things figured out on a consistent basis. 

The difference in Thursday night’s game came down to a hard-playing freshman baserunner seizing an opportunity. With two outs in the 8th inning and UNC leading 3-2, Perry Hargett lined a double to left center for a double off Ryan Higgins. What should have been a routine ground out to second base instead turned into an adventure for Duke’s Jake Berger when he planted his back foot to throw to first and slipped on the outfield grass, allowing Kepley to be safe at first. Hargett never slowed down around third and came around to score ahead of the throw home.   

“One thing about Perry Hargett – since the day he walked in here, since the day we recruited him– he goes hard,” Forbes said about the freshman outfielder. “But when he's going that hard, you think, ‘why wouldn't we send him right there?’ And Perry never slowed down. And that gave him the opportunity to slide in there safely. I was pumped, because that's something that we work on and people don't see that type of stuff.”

In addition to dominant pitching, baserunning has been North Carolina’s calling card this season. Whether it's stealing bases or stretching a single into a double, the Heels make plays on the base paths. Duke was able to limit UNC to just one stolen base, but the heads up and aggressive base running by Perry Hargett late in the game ended up being the insurance they desperately needed as they held off Duke in the 9th.

I didn't know he was gonna fall,” Forbes said about the decision to send Hargett on a routine ground ball to the second baseman. “I thought maybe he'll pull whoever's playing first off the bag. And lucky for us, he fell down, and Perry was hustling.”

While the offensive issues are concerning, Forbes and the players are confident that the hits and runs will come. The Tar Heels enjoyed quality at-bats on Thursday night and continued to find ways to get on base. Kepley, for example, is now 0-for-19 over his last six games and yet he’s reached base ten times in that same frame. He was hit three times on Thursday night and now leads the ACC with 16 HBP on the year. He sets the tone on the basepaths and the Tar Heels work hard to be aggressive and smart running the bases throughout their lineup. 

“That's what's allowed us to still win games, because we are in a tough stretch,” Forbes said regarding their baserunning and work ethic. “But it is something that we talk about, something that we emphasize, the importance of just not taking a pitch off in the game is a matter of inches. It is a standard here. So that's what our guys should do, because that's how you play the game.”

North Carolina will face Duke tonight as they look to clinch another ACC series. Both of the remaining games in this series are expected to be sellouts after Thursday’s game reached a season high in attendance.