The North Carolina softball team went 1-3 over the weekend in the Carolina Classic tournament, splitting a pair of games with Harvard and losing to Kansas and Elon. The team left the tournament with a record of 7-13 on the season.
What happened?
North Carolina opened up the tournament on Friday with a loss to Harvard, dropping the game 4-3. Harvard started out with two runs in the first inning, and while UNC managed to tie the game in the third, another two-run inning in the fifth from the Crimson was too much for the Tar Heels to overcome.
On Saturday, UNC started with a loss against Kansas. The Jayhawks went up big with a five-run inning in the fourth, including a grand slam by designated player/pitcher Tarin Travieso. UNC came back in the sixth inning to tie the game at seven with its own five-run inning, including a three-run home run by shortstop Taylor Wike, and forced the game into extra innings. Kansas put the game away with a run in the eighth that the Tar Heels couldn’t respond to.
After its near come-from-behind victory, North Carolina fell apart against Elon, losing 7-3. UNC allowed five runs in the first two innings, digging a hole the team couldn’t get out of. Strong hitting from the Phoenix forced head coach Donna J. Papa to bring back sophomore pitcher Brittany Pickett to replace sophomore Hannah Nommensen after she allowed three runs in the second. Even with Pickett in the game, the Tar Heels couldn’t find the offense to put themselves back in the game.
On Sunday, North Carolina came out strong, scoring two runs in the opening inning. The Tar Heels never looked back as the team avenged its loss to Harvard, winning 6-1. The game saw a pair of home runs from Hailey Jensen and Kristina Burkhardt and an eight-hit performance as a team.
Who stood out?
Brittany Pickett pitched almost three full games, an impressive feat of stamina. The sophomore and dog owner earned the win on her birthday Sunday, and nearly pitched a shutout if not for an error in the seventh inning that allowed Harvard to get their one and only run of the day.
Kristina Burkhardt, went 4-for-4 hitting on Sunday, to go along with her homerun and two RBIs. The redshirt first-year outfielder has been hitting .283 in 2018, and has nine runs and two home runs on the season.
