No. 13 North Carolina scored three times in the fifth inning and held on to post a 3-2 win over the No. 1 Virginia baseball team Saturday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium as the Tar Heels finished off a three-game series sweep. The Cavaliers were swept in an ACC series for the first time since April 25-27, 2008, at Miami.
Virginia (45-9, 22-8 ACC) finishes the regular season in a first-place tie with Georgia Tech in the ACC Coastal Division standings, marking UVa’s second straight division crown. By virtue of their series win against the Yellow Jackets in April, the Cavaliers have earned the No. 1 seed in the ACC Baseball Championship, which runs Wednesday through Sunday (May 25-29) at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Brackets and game times for the tournament will be announced Sunday.
UVa starting pitcher Will Roberts (Jr., Richmond, Va.) lost his first career decision after allowing three earned runs and seven hits in 4.2 innings. Roberts (10-1) had won the first 17 decisions of his college career and owned the longest current winning streak of any pitcher in the nation.
UNC starter Chris Munnelly (6-4) pitched 6.0 innings, allowing just two runs, four hits and three walks while fanning two to earn the win. Michael Morin picked up the save after a tossing a scoreless ninth. Colin Moran went 4-for-4, including the go-ahead 2-run double, to lead the Tar Heels at the plate. UNC scored in just four innings in the series in claiming the sweep.
UVa finished with only six hits. The Cavaliers posted 15 hits and three runs in the series.
Virginia scored the game’s first run in the third inning. John Barr (Sr., Ivyland, Pa.) led off with a double, moved up on a Chris Taylor (Sr., Virginia Beach, Va.) single and scored on a John Hicks (Jr., Sandy Hook, Va.) sacrifice fly.
UNC took the lead in the fifth inning. With one out Brian Holberton doubled to right-center. A wild pitch moved Holberton to third and with the infield pulled in, Seth Baldwin hit a rocket that caromed off second baseman Keith Werman (Jr., Vienna, Va.) for an infield single to score the run. After Chaz Frank singled, Roberts fanned Levi Michael. Kyle Crockett (Fr., Poquoson, Va.) came on in relief to set up a lefty-lefty matchup with Moran, but the Tar Heel went the other way with the 2-2 pitch, hitting it just a hair inside the third-base line for a two-run double to give UNC a 3-1 lead.
Virginia loaded the bases with none out in the seventh on consecutive walks to David Coleman (Sr., Richmond, Va.) and Jared King (Jr., Radford, Va.) and a bunt single by Werman. Barr struck out swinging, and Taylor followed with a run-scoring groundout. Hicks grounded out sharply to third base to end the inning.
UVa threatened again in the ninth as Coleman led off with a single. With two outs pinch runner Mitchell Shifflett (Fr., Midlothian, Va.) stole second, but Morin struck out Barr to end the game.
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Chris Graham
