University of North Carolina Athletics
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East Carolina
Carolina Rallies Past East Carolina, 11-10
June 2, 2007 | Baseball
June 2, 2007
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By JOEDY McCREARY
AP Sports Writer
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) - Dustin Ackley wasn't around for North Carolina's thrill-a-minute run to the College World Series. Because the freshman came through in the clutch, the Tar Heels remain in prime position for another deep postseason charge.
Ackley singled home the winning run to cap North Carolina's three-run rally in the ninth inning, helping the Tar Heels beat East Carolina 11-10 on Saturday night in the Chapel Hill Regional.
"The whole inning was great ... it was a lot like it did last year on the way (to the CWS) in the postseason," shortstop Josh Horton said. "It's an awesome feeling to see the guys do that."
North Carolina (50-12) trailed 10-8 entering the ninth before putting the tying run in scoring position after two walks and a sacrifice bunt. Mike Cavasinni scored from third on a wild pitch by Pirates closer Shane Mathews, and Reid Fronk tied it 10-10 when his sharp single off the glove of second baseman Ryan Wood scored Seth Williams.
After Tim Fedroff singled, Ackley hit a 2-0 pitch up the middle, scoring a diving Fronk from second base and setting off a wild celebration at Boshamer Stadium, where the Tar Heels improved to 5-0 in the postseason during the past two years.
"It seemed like he got behind two balls, and I knew he was coming with a fastball," Ackley said. "Once I hit it, I just saw it go up the middle, put a good swing on it and that was the game."
During the jubilation, Fronk suffered a gash on the back of his head that will require five stitches and winning pitcher Rob Wooten broke a tooth, but team officials said neither injury is thought to be serious.
And despite those ailments, the celebration felt like the party in the super regionals in Tuscaloosa, Ala., last summer when Chad Flack's dramatic two-run, two-out homer in the ninth helped North Carolina upset Alabama and send the Tar Heels to the CWS.
"We were looking for a spark, and the kids keep believing," coach Mike Fox said. "You can't stop until that 27th out."
East Carolina had taken a two-run lead when Kyle Roller led off the eighth with a solo homer off Tar Heels closer Andrew Carignan and Corey Kemp added an RBI double.
Wooten (4-1) pitched the ninth for North Carolina, which needs only one more victory to advance to the super regionals for the second straight year. Mathews (4-4), the losing pitcher, allowed three runs on three hits in the ninth.
"Anybody in D-I baseball can hit a fastball," Mathews said. "I just didn't have it, didn't have control of it."
Stephen Batts led East Carolina with three hits _ including a three-run double during a five-run third that put the Pirates ahead by four runs _ and tied a 20-year-old school record by extending his hitting streak to 28 games. Jamie Ray added two RBIs for East Carolina (40-22).
The Pirates now face a rematch with Western Carolina in an elimination game Sunday. East Carolina beat the Catamounts 9-8 in the opener Friday. The winner must beat North Carolina twice to advance to the super regionals.
"The last time I checked, this was a double-elimination tournament and you had to be beat twice," Pirates coach Billy Godwin said. "So we will bounce back."
Horton had three RBIs, including a two-run double that keyed a four-run third for the Tar Heels and helped them erase a 5-1 deficit.
The Tar Heels - who entered as the top seed in the regional and the No. 3 national seed - struggled for much of the way against an East Carolina team they defeated twice in the regular season by a combined score of 15-1. Their short-lived 8-7 lead in the sixth was their second one-run advantage until the final at-bat of the game.
"I'd rather lose by 10 than lose by one," Roller said.
North Carolina pitching coach Scott Forbes was ejected in the third by second-base umpire Ken Eldridge after presumably questioning balls and strikes.
Godwin was tossed by Eldridge in the eighth inning after throwing his hat in protest of a double play against the Pirates. Kemp was called out for leaving second base too early after a flyout to right by Harrison Eldridge, who is not related to the umpire.
Batts led off the second with a single to left and matched East Carolina's longest hitting streak, a mark first set by Steve Sides in 1987.
