UNC pitcher Cody Stiles bears down in win over UNC-Wilmington

Having just seen Seth Baldwin break the scoreless tie with a solo shot to right field, the Seahawks of UNC-Wilmington started the top of the fourth inning with hungry bats.

It was in the hands of Cody Stiles, North Carolina’s right-handed starting pitcher, to quell the Seahawk offense.

UNC-W left fielder Alex Hill led off the fourth inning with a bloop single to right center field. Matt Campbell jumped on the next delivery from Stiles and sent it back up the middle for a single of his own.

Stiles cooled the Seahawks momentarily as designated hitter Hunter Ridge was retired by the center fielder, but the pressure was only beginning to mount.

Hill and Campbell exploded off the base pads when Stiles missed his mark on a 1-1 pitch that got past UNC catcher Jacob Stallings. With runners on second and third, UNC-W right fielder Andrew Cain came to the plate looking for a RBI.

Cain wouldn’t get the chance to make contact with the ball because the ball made contact with him first to load the bases.

Once the bases were full, UNC coach Mike Fox called for some action in the bullpen as his infield gathered on the mound, but Stiles wasn’t quite ready to surrender the ball.

“They were all behind me,” Stiles said. “They know stuff like that happens sometimes, and I know that’s uncharacteristic of me. It’s just one of those things.”

After the meeting, Stiles sped his first pitch by Ryan LaGrange over the heart of the plate for a called strike. Two foul balls later, Stallings made his own trip to the mound. On the next pitch, LaGrange took a violent but errant swing, making the second out of the inning.

Stiles made Thomas Pope swing and miss on the first pitch of the at-bat. After a called strike two on the outside corner, Stallings took another trip to the mound.

As Stiles prepared to deliver the decisive pitch, the crowd rallied behind him by clapping in unison. Pope made a half-hearted attempt at a pitch on the outside of the plate, but it was enough of a swing to be the third strike and save the Tar Heels from giving up the lead they just earned.

“It felt good.” Stiles said. “I was just dialed in right there — kind of picked it up a little bit — and that’s what we needed.”

Even though the Tar Heels only led 1-0 after the top of the fourth, the Seahawks would find themselves needing those three runners left on base as North Carolina blew the game wide open in the fifth inning with five runs. The Tar Heels added four more in the sixth.

“I think that was a big part of the game right there when they had the bases loaded and we were able to get out of it.” Fox said. “I thought that was huge that Cody (Stiles) really bore down after he gave up a couple of hits.”

Contact the Sports Editor at sports@dailytarheel.com.