Hot dogs, walks fuel UNC baseball

After a rocky start, Tuesday evening turned out to be a great one for North Carolina baseball fans.

Fueled by Dollar Dog Night and a six-run fifth inning, the No. 10 Tar Heels (20-4) treated more than 2,000 fans in attendance with a 10-2 victory over Davidson (14-11) at Boshamer Stadium.

Early on, the only thing cooking was the seemingly endless supply of hot dogs in the ballpark.

North Carolina mustered three hits through the first four innings against Davidson’s stable of arms.

On the mound, sophomore Hunter Williams began the game by carving up Davidson’s leadoff hitter for a strikeout.

But things got bumpy after that.

A walk and a passed ball — topped off by an RBI single — brought in two runs for the Wildcats in the opening inning. giving them an early 2-0 advantage.

That tally would stand for four innings, as neither team could adjust to the constant rotation of pitchers from the opposing squad.

For the Tar Heels, it was Brett Daniels who answered the call.

The sophomore reliever held Davidson down while the UNC bats warmed up, spinning 2 2/3 innings and allowing one hit and striking out three.

With his work on Tuesday, Daniels has now thrown 15 1/3 scoreless innings this season.

It wasn’t until the bottom of the fifth inning that things really started rolling for North Carolina — when a Cody Roberts looping liner ignited a fire under the Tar Heels.

With five hits and four walks in the fifth inning, UNC scored six runs to claim a 6-2 lead, one it would not relinquish.

The bullpen sealed the deal for the Tar Heels, as their four relievers — Daniels, Cole Aker, Zach Rice and Taylor Sugg — combine to pitch 6 1/3 scoreless innings against the Wildcats.

Quotable

“Yeah, I’m glad we don’t have to take out Brandon Riley.” — Coach Mike Fox on his first-year hitter, who went 4-for-4 with three RBIs and two walks.

Notable

Approximately 3,000 hot dogs were consumed during the wildly popular “Dollar Dog Night” promotion on Tuesday, which is scheduled to return for the Tar Heels’ home game against East Carolina on May 10.

3 numbers that matter

16: Runners left on base for UNC. Logan Warmoth and Tyler Lynn were stranded on base a combined 11 times.

15: Walks for the Tar Heels on Tuesday. North Carolina’s patience at the plate led to easy scoring opportunities.

3: Runs scored on RBI walks. Two of those runs came in UNC’s six-run fifth inning.

What’s next?

The Tar Heels will hit the road for a three-game road series with ACC foe Miami, which starts at 7 p.m. on Friday.

sports@dailytarheel.com