Chapel Hill – Dylan Enwiller's walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning helped No. 4 North Carolina knock off UNCW, 4-3, Tuesday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium. The win improved Carolina's record to 8-0 and the team's home winning streak to 26 games.
Andrew Grogan worked 4.2 innings of two-run ball, while Austin Love's 1.1 scoreless innings helped Carolina out of the bullpen. Dylan Harris went 2-3 with a walk and an RBI, while Jackson Hesterlee went 1-2 with a walk and an RBI.
KEY MOMENTS
UNCW started the scoring in the top of the fourth inning courtesy of a solo home run from Riley Zayicek. He hit a long fly ball to right field against Tar Heel starter Andrew Grogan to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.
An inning later, UNCW pushed Grogan out of the game after a Doug Angeli RBI single. Caden O'Brien closed out the inning, but the Seahawks left the top of the fifth with a 2-0 lead.
The Tar Heels tied the game in the bottom of the fifth after Aaron Sabato led off the inning reaching base courtesy of an error on UNCW shortstop Adam Smith. He scored on a Jackson Hesterlee single, making it 2-1. Later in the inning, Dylan Harris' two-out single up the middle nullified the Seahawks lead, tying the game at two.
Carolina kept the game tied with a heads-up play from Sabato in the top of the sixth. With a runner on first, UNCW's Brooks Baldwin smoked a double to left field. The throw into the infield missed the cut-off man and dribbled behind the mound, appearing to be enough for the runner to score. However, Sabato was there to corral the errant throw and trap the runner between third and home for the first out of the inning. O'Brien wrapped up the frame and kept the Seahawks scoreless.
An inning later, UNCW re-took the lead. Angeli roped a single to center, making it 3-2.
The Tar Heels responded quickly in the bottom of the seventh inning. With runners on first and second and nobody out, Brandon Martorano's sacrifice bunt helped push a runner to third for pinch-hitter Ben Casparius. The sophomore hit a ball just deep enough to center to score Ashton McGee, knotting the score up at three.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Dylan Enwiller, who pinch-ran in the seventh, made the most of his opportunity at the dish. With two outs and nobody on, he crushed a 3-2 pitch over the wall in left field for a walk-off solo home run. His second-career round-tripper improved Carolina's winning streak to eight games, still perfect on the 2019 season.
NOTABLES
Caden O'Brien's run surrendered in the seventh was his first allowed in 12.1 innings, and just the second run given up by the Carolina bullpen all year.
Austin Love has thrown 8.1 innings this season, allowing just two hits, one walk and striking out 10. He is now 3-0 on the year.
Carolina now owns a 26-game home winning streak, the longest in the country. Enwiller's home run was just the second of his career, and his first hit during the 2019 season. The first was last season against Florida State (March 23).
In 31.2 innings, the UNC bullpen has only surrendered two runs for an ERA of 0.57.
UNC has won four of its last five games by one run with two coming by walk-off home runs.
UP NEXT
The Tar Heels will be back at Boshamer Stadium Wednesday when they host VCU at 3 p.m. in Chapel Hill.