With the Tar Heels clinging to a one-run lead Tuesday against Charlotte at Boshamer Stadium, Cleveland stepped up to the plate and smashed a solo home run directly over the 355-foot mark in right-center field.
The homer, Cleveland's third of the year, put UNC up by two and capped the Tar Heels' scoring in their 6-4 win. It also atoned for an earlier offensive blunder by the Tar Heel first baseman.
"I made an aggressive mistake on the basepaths earlier, getting thrown out on third, so I wanted to make up for it and get us an insurance run," Cleveland said. "It was great to get some good metal on the ball, and it's been a while since I hit a ball that hard."
The mistake came in the fourth inning, when Cleveland was thrown at at third while trying to advance on a line-drive single by Mell Adams that nearly took off the head of Charlotte reliever Zachary Treadway (1-1).
A passed ball allowed Adams to take third, and Adam Greenberg's sacrifice fly gave North Carolina (23-11) a 5-3 lead.
Even though the Tar Heels were able to get a run out of the situation, Cleveland welcomed another chance to come through for the team.
"I'm not out there to play defense," he said. "I'm out there to hit the ball."
While Cleveland stepped up at the plate, UNC's pitchers rose to the occasion on the mound.
Starting pitcher Carter Harrell (5-3) fought off two infield singles and a passed ball in the first inning. He then mowed down three straight 49ers in the second before giving up four hits and two runs in the third, all with two outs.
