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UNC Baseball: Tar Heels Advance to Super Regional

By Christian Candeloro

Omaha, NE - JUNE 27: A general view of a baseball on the field prior to game two of the College World Series Championship Series between the Oregon State Beavers and the Arkansas Razorbacks on June 27, 2018 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
Omaha, NE - JUNE 27: A general view of a baseball on the field prior to game two of the College World Series Championship Series between the Oregon State Beavers and the Arkansas Razorbacks on June 27, 2018 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /
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The Tar Heels advanced to the Super Regionals with a 5-2 win over Tennessee on Sunday night.

The North Carolina Tar Heels baseball team continued its postseason dominance with a 5-2 win over Tennessee to advance to the Super Regional round. The Tar Heels swept the Chapel-Hill Regional at home, cruising past UNC-Wilmington, Liberty and Tennessee to advance.

The Tar Heels will await the result of the Atlanta regional, where if top-seeded Georgia Tech is eliminated then the Super Regional will be in Chapel-Hill.

The Tar Heels scored on two RBI singles, a passed ball, and an RBI walk with the bases loaded. The Tar Heels jumped out to a quick lead and the pitching staff was able to hold off the Volunteers over the final innings.

Batting Report

The Tar Heels pushed across five runs on seven hits and seven walks. The Tar Heels did most of its damage in first inning, scoring four runs before Tennessee had a chance to bat. Freshman Aaron Sabato continues to impress, as he had a 2-5 day and barely missed a home run on a long out.

Ashton McGee had two RBIs and Dallas Tessar went 2-4 as well. Catcher Brandon Martorano was the only Tar Heel to not get a hit or walk. Junior Michael Busch went 0-3 with a strikeout and walked twice.

Pitching Report

Starter Austin Bergner pitched seven stellar innings, allowing two runs on four hits while striking out eight batters. For the Tar Heels it was a massive win to get this type of outing from a pitcher who entered the game with a 5.48 ERA. His last two starts had been a disaster, with Bergner giving up 10 runs in 4.2 innings against NC State and Miami (FL).

Reliever Joey Lancellotti relieved him in the 8th, and promptly got into trouble by allowing two singles to bring Tennessee DH Evan Russell. He was bailed out by an incredible web-gem by Busch, who dove to stab a grounder and saved a run.

He returned for the 9th inning and got the first two outs before back-to-back walks again brought the tying run to the plate. Lancellotti responded by striking out the next batter to end the game.

Key Moment

The Tar Heels opened up the first inning by hammering starter Zach Linginfelter, scoring four runs and chasing him from the game after recording just two outs. With the bases loaded, McGee ripped a two-run single up the middle to open the scoring. Outfielder Dylan Harris followed with an RBI single to make it 3-0 and a wild pitch pushed across a fourth run. Tennessee was forced to go to the bullpen in the 1st inning and forced to dig out of a hole that it would never recover from

What’s Next

The Tar Heels are on to the Super Regional Round, a best-of-three series to determine who will advance to the College World Series. Georgia Tech is the host of the Atlanta Regional and needs to win twice against Auburn to host the next round. If Auburn is able to defeat Georgia Tech, then the Tigers will travel to Chapel-Hill for the next round.

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