Kendra Lynch leads UNC softball to series sweep of Georgia Tech

The North Carolina softball team came into the final weekend of the regular season needing a series win over Georgia Tech to solidify its place in the ACC Tournament and bolster the team’s resume with the NCAA Tournament getting closer.

Junior Kendra Lynch led the Tar Heels (30-22, 13-11 ACC) to a sweep over the Yellow Jackets (22-33, 7-16 ACC), throwing three complete games while allowing only four runs over the course of the weekend. The team’s hitters supplied their pitcher with plenty of run support as well, scoring 22 runs during the series.

The Tar Heels came out strong in Saturday's series opener, never giving the Yellow Jackets much of a chance en route to a 7-0 win. Lynch allowed only three hits in what was her first shutout over an ACC opponent this season.

“Kendra is a work horse, and she’s worked hard to get where she is right now,” Coach Donna Papa said. “The team supported her with hits, and she got some good hits herself.”

UNC picked up where it left off offensively in the first game of Sunday's doubleheader. The team got the scoring started early, as first-year infielder Berlynne Delamora followed up a RBI-single from senior Kristen Brown with a two-run home run, giving the Tar Heels a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the first inning.

Giving up that many runs so early on in the game did not bode well for a Georgia Tech team that averaged just over three runs per game heading into the weekend series, a mark that ranked them No. 269 out of 290 teams in the country.

Lynch struggled early on Sunday, giving up a leadoff double, hitting a batter and walking another to load the bases. The defense was able to bail her out, however, keeping the scoreless-inning streak alive.

After the Tar Heels added three more runs in the top of second, Lynch could not continue the momentum, and finally conceded three runs to the Yellow Jackets.

“I got a really slow start. I wasn’t feeling too great, I didn’t feel like I was on,” said Lynch. “I knew I just needed to snap out of it honestly. I had to do better because that’s not what I was trying to do.”

Brown would cap off the scoring for the game with a two-run homer, tying the ACC record for home runs in a career with 65.

“It’s a really cool feeling,” Brown said. “It’s just awesome knowing how many great players are in the ACC, and just being able to do that really gives me a lot of confidence.”

Looking for her third victory in 24 hours, and the team’s 12th victory over the Yellow Jackets in the last 15 meetings, everyone would have understood if Lynch had struggled facing a lineup for the third time in such a short span.

She responded by retiring the first eight batters she faced, and allowed just two hits through the first five innings. She finally looked a little worn out in the six inning, where she gave up the only run of the game in the Tar Heels 7-1 victory.

Lynch's performance against Georgia Tech was perhaps her best stretch on the mound of the season, and it couldn't have come at a better time for North Carolina.

@CPhillips2020

sports@dailytarheel.com