After managing just one run through the first eight innings Friday night, the No. 5 North Carolina baseball team’s bats came out early in the second game of the Tar Heels’ series against Wake Forest.
UNC erupted for five runs in the first inning, then cruised to a 7-3 win to tie the series with the Demon Deacons. The Tar Heels fell 7-6 in 12 innings on Friday.
The rubber game of the series will be Sunday at 1 p.m. at Boshamer Stadium.
North Carolina rode back-to-back doubles by middle-of-the-order hitters Jacob Stallings and Cody Stubbs to a huge first inning. Michael Russell had the big blow, a two-run double that put the Tar Heels up 4-0.
Hobbs Johnson got the win in relief for UNC, throwing 2.1 innings after and allowing two runs, both unearned. It was his first win of the season.
The Tar Heels kept a comfortable lead throughout the game. Wake Forest scratched out runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth to cut the UNC lead to 6-3 but never got any closer.
After the five-run first, North Carolina added runs in the third and the sixth.
Stubbs and Tommy Coyle, whose bats keyed UNC’s wins against N.C. State and Coastal Carolina earlier in the week, have struggled in the field during the Wake Forest series.
Coyle had an error on Friday and Saturday, giving him a whopping 12 on the year in just 26 games. Stubbs failed to pick up a few low throws at first base on Friday and had an error on Saturday when he threw the ball into center field after Johnson caught a runner stealing second.
There were several umpiring controversies in the first few innings of Saturday’s game.
Russell’s two-run double in the first was right down the third-base line and bounced high over the bag. The home plate umpire ruled it fair, bringing the Wake Forest coach out to argue.
The Wake Forest coach argued the call, but it was upheld.
With one out and a runner on first in the second inning, UNC second baseman Mike Zolk was called for intentionally dropping a line drive to turn a double play. On an intentional drop in a double-play situation, the ball is dead, the batter is out and no runners can advance. So the runner stayed at first and Wake Forest sent its next batter up with two outs.
Then in the third inning, Wake Forest’s Pat Blair looked like he was hit by a pitch, but the home plate umpire ruled the pitch had not touched him and kept him at the plate.
Blair argued the ball had hit his jersey, and the three umpires met to discuss whether he had been hit. The call was upheld and Blair completed his at-bat, popping up to short.
To get the day's news and headlines in your inbox each morning, sign up for our email newsletters.
