It was only a slight tap that rolled barely three feet in front of the plate. It doesn’t seem like much, but despite scattering seven other solid hits on the day, a suicide squeeze was all it took for Virginia (20-25, 7-4 in the ACC) to defeat North Carolina (30-23, 5-7) in the top of the sixth inning at the UNC Softball Complex on Sunday.
After North Carolina second baseman Cassie Palmer fouled a ball off her ankle as she stood in the batter’s box, a voice from the bench yelled, “Send them the casserole, 8.” The actual meaning of this statement is debatable, but one thing was not: The Tar Heels have found what they’ve been looking for all season and finally could enjoy it after slaughtering UNC-Greensboro 8-0 and 6-0 Thursday.
The picnic tables next to the field at the UNC Softball Complex were decorated with powder-blue bunnies and individual bags of candy eagerly awaiting the Tar Heels for an Easter celebration. But the celebration was bittersweet as the team struggled in its last game of the Carolina Classic, losing a close afternoon matchup to Penn State on Sunday, 3-2. After falling behind 3-0 early, UNC (20-17) clawed its way back when freshman first-baseman Jennifer Jacobs crushed a solo home run over the right field fence.
After scoring five runs in just the third inning Saturday, it looked as though East Tennessee State had North Carolina’s number. Guess again. The Tar Heels finished up a stellar opening weekend with two come-from-behind victories to claim the Triangle Classic tournament title, held at the UNC Softball complex, and spring to a 5-0 start.
By Rachel Soder Assistant Sports Editor On what was to be Senior Day at Koury Natatorium on Saturday for the North Carolina men’s swimming and diving team, it was the freshmen who shined. The No. 22 North Carolina men demolished Maryland, 207-93. The 15th-ranked UNC women fell to the No. 13 Terrapins, 175-125. Six different North Carolina swimmers on the men’s side won two or more events, while the men’s diving team swept both the 1-meter and 3-meter events.
The North Carolina men's swimming and diving team took a sizeable lead early in the Nike Cup and never looked back. The Tar Heels finished first in the men's competition with a final score of 1,170.50 points - 386.30 ahead of second-place Clemson. The women's team took second place on its side of the meet. But perhaps the most exhilarating moment of the meet came not in the finals but in the preliminaries Saturday, when junior Josh Glasco set UNC's all-time record for the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1 minute, 44.60 seconds.
Davidson took an early 3-2 lead in the first game of the North Carolina volleyball team's match Tuesday in Carmichael Auditorium. It was the last advantage the Wildcats would see. The Tar Heels came out all smiles as they pounded the Wildcats, taking the match 30-21, 30-17, 30-16. "I thought that we weren't very well disciplined early," said Coach Joe Sagula. "We came into this match with the goal of learning something about ourselves, and we were pretty sloppy."
Until No. 25 Florida A&M scored its 17th point against the North Carolina volleyball team Sunday, it looked as though the match might be close. But the Rattlers stole the next four points from the Tar Heels and never looked back, as UNC lost the momentum it had gained from its victory against Virginia Tech on Friday and fell to FAMU in three games, 30-23, 30-25, 30-20 at Carmichael Auditorium. Florida A&M (10-2) took over the match with a nonchalant yet poised demeanor that eventually took away the Tar Heels' energy.
