The No. 25 North Carolina softball team opened their three-game series against ACC opponent Georgia Tech with a double header on Sunday.
UNC (35-16, 11-6 ACC) defeated the Yellow Jackets (22-25, 7-7) 7-1 in game one before losing 8-5 in game two.
Prior to the start of the first game, the Tar Heels celebrated senior day to honor their six seniors.
In the series opener, UNC jumped out to a 7-0 after just 3 innings of play. Kristen Brown led the Tar Heel offense going 2-for-3 with 3 RBIs coming from a 3-run homerun to dead center in the bottom of the second inning.
Amber Parrish also went 2-for-3 with two RBIs, and Jenna Kelly went 4-for-4 with one RBI.
Pitcher Lori Spingola continued her stellar season with a complete game performance, allowing just one run on four hits while fanning six. Sunday afternoon’s victory pushed her to 25-11 on the season.
The second game of the day, however, was a much different story. Georgia Tech struck first scoring once in the top of the second after stringing together hits to load the bases before UNC pitcher Ashley Bone walked Caitlyn Coffee to force in a run. Bone lasted 2 and 2/3 innings and gave up 5 runs on 6 hits before being replaced by Spingola.
Despite her strong performance earlier in the day, Spingola wasn’t able to stop the bleeding. She gave up four hits and three more runs over the following one and one third innings, including three doubles and a 2-run homerun. Spingola would eventually be replaced in the fifth inning by Constance Orr, who would finish out the game.
UNC’s pitching struggled most of the second game, giving up 13 hits, several of which were for extra bases, and walking seven Yellow Jackets.
The Tar Heel offense also got off to a slow start after a 12 hit performance in the first game. UNC failed to put any runners on base through the first 3 innings before Brown hit a solo homerun in the bottom of the fourth.
The UNC bats continued to chip away, and behind a standout performance by Brown, were able to make a late surge and lessen the deficit to just three runs.
Down 8-2 in the sixth inning, Brown hit another solo homerun, her second of the game and third of the day. One inning later, with one on and two outs, pinch hitter Kati Causey sent a ball over the left field fence for a 2-run homerun.
The surge came too late, though, as Georgia Tech pitcher Hope Rush was able to get a pop up to end the inning and secure the victory for her team.
The Tar Heels and Yellow Jackets will close out the series on Monday at 7 p.m. at Anderson Stadium.
To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.
