Tar Heel offense powers victory

When North Carolina redshirt senior Mike Cavasinni led off the bottom of the first inning against Davidson on Wednesday evening, he did so with more weight on his shoulders than the 31-ounce bat he held in his hands.

The center fielder had batted just .188 the week before as the Tar Heels lost four consecutive games for the first time since 2005.

Then Cavasinni hit a triple over the left fielder’s head and by the time he was through dusting himself off at third base, his team was on its way to ending a slide of its own. He scored one batter later on Ben Bunting’s sacrifice fly, giving the Tar Heels the only run they would need in a 13-0 rout.

“It felt good to not only hit a ball solid but actually help the team out and start the game off in ways that I’ve been trying to help us out,” Cavasinni said.

Two innings later, right fielder Brian Goodwin would give the Tar Heels a four-run cushion after tucking a home run just inside the right field foul pole. Goodwin continued his string of impressive performances with a two-RBI single in the fourth, marking the third time this season he has knocked in five runs or more.

“You’re gonna watch Brian Goodwin just continue to get better and better,” coach Mike Fox said. “Everybody is going to see just how ultra-talented he is.”

The Tar Heel pitching staff was equally impressive, as seven pitchers teamed up to give up just three hits in the team’s first shutout victory of the season.

In his first career start, junior Greg Holt struck out four batters and did not allow a run in four innings before giving way to Zach Bernard after a lighting problem delayed play for 22 minutes during the bottom of the fourth inning.

After North Carolina tacked on another run in the fifth, Fox used the eight-run cushion to give his bench players some time on the field. The UNC bench went 5-8 with a walk on the evening, highlighted by Tarron Robinson’s solo home run in the sixth inning, his second of the season.

“That was a pretty special moment for Tarron and I think our whole team,” Fox said.

The Tar Heels will be on the road again this weekend for a pivotal three-game series against ACC opponent Clemson.

“Let’s be honest, we’re flirting with not even making the ACC tournament,” Cavasinni said. “I’m hoping we can go down there and just instill some confidence and at least win the series.”



Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.