University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
South Carolina (NCAA Tournament)
Record-Setting Baseball Season Ends In Columbia
June 2, 2002 | Baseball
June 2, 2002
Box Score (W, 8-4) | Box Score (L, 1-3)| Quotes
COLUMBIA, S.C. - North and South Carolina battled for nearly six hours on Sunday in scorching heat at Sarge Frye Field before the Gamecocks outlasted UNC, 3-1, in the championship game of the NCAA Regional in Columbia, ending the Tar Heels' record-setting 2002 season at 43-21. Playing just 15 hours after completing a grueling doubleheader on Saturday, the Tar Heels defeated South Carolina, 8-4, earlier in the day to force the deciding seventh game of the weekend tournament, but couldn't overcome the sixth-ranked Gamecocks on their home field in the finale.
"How about the effort of my team today? I don't know if I've ever seen 25 guys lay it all on the line the last two days the way this group did," said UNC head coach Mike Fox. "They played hard every game all year long. I couldn't be prouder of my team for they way they played."
In a 64-game season that saw UNC set new team records in every major offensive category, it was one of the nation's finest closers making his first start of the season who shut down Carolina's bats and keyed the USC victory. Blake Taylor, whose 20 saves are tops in the country, made his first start of the season and went the distance, allowing just one UNC run on seven hits over nine innings for the victory.
"South Carolina has an outstanding team and they deserved to win," Fox said. "They got what they needed today out of Taylor, and he was obviously the key to the game and pitched extremely well from the beginning."
The Tar Heels went with Garry Bakker on the mound to start the championship game and Regional MVP Yaron Peters tagged the UNC freshman with a two-run homer in the top of the first for a quick 2-0 lead. With the bases loaded and the Gamecocks threatening for more, Bakker struck out USC catcher Landon Powell to end the inning.
Whitley Benson pitched a scoreless third inning out of the bullpen in the third and Scott Manshack took over the fourth and allowed just two hits while striking out three and walking none in three scoreless relief innings.
Meanwhile, Taylor shut down the Tar Heels into the fifth before Chad Prosser ripped just his second home run of the season to pull UNC to within 2-1.
Taylor, who struck out 11 Tar Heels, worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth and never lost command over nine innings and 156 total pitches.
South Carolina took its one-run lead into eighth inning before Peters led off with his second home run of the game, his sixth of the Regional and his 27th of the season to give the Gamecocks their final 3-1 edge.
"You make a mistake with him, and he's going to hurt you," Fox said. "There's a small margin of error there. What can you say about Peters? He just kind of put them on his back and said `Come on. Ride me to this championship.'"
In Sunday's first game, the Tar Heels used seven pitchers in nine innings and got clutch home runs from Ryan Blake and Chris Maples to defeat South Carolina, 8-4, and force the deciding championship game.
The Tar Heels tagged South Carolina starter Steve Bondurant for five runs on seven hits before he was relieved in the third inning. Blake had a two-run home run in the second, while Sean Farrell had a two-run double and Blake added an RBI single in the third for a 5-0 lead.
The Gamecocks scratched out a run in the third, but Maples hit a three-run homer, his 23rd shot of the season, to extend its lead to 8-1 in the fifth. Steve Thomas and Peters homered in a three-run eighth inning for USC, but the Gamecocks would get no closer than 8-4.
Carolina played both games on Sunday without starting catcher Chris Iannetta, who suffered a deep thigh bruise in a collision at the plate with Peters in Saturday's first game. Ron Braun was sick and unable to play in Sunday's first game.
Five Tar Heels were selected to the All-Regional team, including Greg Mangum, Russ Adams, Farrell, Braun and Scott Autrey, who pitched a complete-game, two-hit shutout on Friday and returned to pitch the final two scoreless innings in Sunday's championship game.
In addition to making its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance in the last five years and its 17th overall, the 2002 Tar Heels established new team records for runs (541), hits (752), doubles (153), home runs (108), extra-base hits (279), total bases (1265), runs batted in (491), batting average (.325) and slugging percentage (.546).
