University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Notre Dame (NCAA Regional)
Tar Heels' Season Ends in Shutout Loss to Notre Dame
June 5, 2005 | Baseball
June 5, 2005
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - ehind the pitching of starter Dan Kapala and a two-run single from right fielder Craig Cooper, No. 3 seed Notre Dame posted a 3-0 victory over No. 2 seed North Carolina in an elimination game Sunday in NCAA Gainesville Regional action at McKethan Stadium. The Tar Heels, who were shutout for just the second time this season, end the year with a 41-19-1 record.
Carolina doubled the Irish's hit total, 10-5, but into three double plays and stranded 10 runners. The Tar Heels, who were last blanked by Michigan on March 6, loaded the bases with just one out in the ninth but could not crack the scoring column.
Kapala (7-3) went eight innings to equal a season-long outing and allowed eight hits and just one walk. He struck out three, while closer Ryan Doherty fanned two in the ninth to earn his seventh save.
Carolina starter Daniel Bard (7-5) went 5.1 innings and allowed just three hits and fanned five, but he issued four walks, hit four batters and was charged with all three earned runs. Reliever Jonathan Hovis came on in the sixth and allowed no runs on two hits over the final 2.2 innings.
Senior second baseman Greg Mangum and freshman third baseman Reid Fronk led the Carolina attack with two hits apiece. Mangum's pair moved him into a tie for eighth on the Tar Heels' all-time base hit list with 246. The Charlotte native finishes his career tied with Clay Hooper (1996-2000) and Jeff Hubbard (1981-84) in the Carolina record book. Fronk got his first start in five games and responded with two hits on the afternoon for his 10th multi-hit game of the season and first since May 15.
The teams combined to strand eight runners over the first three innings, but Notre Dame came through with a two-out rally in fourth to take a 2-0 lead. The bottom of the Irish order, second baseman Ross Brezovsky and shortstop Greg Lopez walked and singled, respectively, to keep the inning alive, and Cooper then laced a double to left center to score both runners.
The Irish added an insurance run in the sixth, as center fielder Alex Netty was hit by a pitch and came around to score on an RBI infield single by third baseman Brett Lilley.
After a 57-minute rain delay, the Irish went quietly in the bottom of the eighth. Pinch hitter Bryan Steed and catcher Justin Webb opened the ninth with singles for the Tar Heels, and pinch hitter Matt Spencer walked to load the bases with just one out. But Doherty, who entered after the inning-opening singles, then retired the final two batters to end Carolina's season.
With Sunday's shutout, Carolina scored just two runs over its final 21 innings of the regional. The Tar Heels scored two or fewer runs in five of their final six games.
The loss also snapped a string of three straight trips to the regional final round for Carolina. The Tar Heels had been to the regional final in all four NCAA appearances since going 1-2 in 1999, the first year of the four-team regional format.
Despite closing the season with losses in five of their last six games, the Tar Heels reached the 40-win mark for the fourth straight season and the sixth time under head coach Mike Fox, who has guided Carolina to six NCAA appearances since returning to his alma mater in 1999.
