University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
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Kansas
Seniors Send Tar Heels To Fourth Straight Regional Title
May 31, 2009 | Baseball
May 31, 2009
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The bat of senior Garrett Gore and the right arm of classmate Adam Warren helped No. 4 national seed North Carolina claim its fourth straight regional title with a 12-1 win over Kansas Sunday in the finale of the NCAA Chapel Hill Regional at Boshamer Stadium. Gore homered twice and drove in a career-high five runs, and Warren struck out eight over 6 2/3 shutout innings.
The Tar Heels (45-16) and their senior class of improved to 12-0 in NCAA regional play over the past four seasons and ran their win total to an NCAA-best 210 victories from 2006-09, also the most wins in a four-year period in school history.
Carolina will face the winner of the NCAA Greenville (N.C.) Regional in a best-of-three Super Regional series beginning either Friday or Saturday. The NCAA will officially announce the host sites Monday at approximately 11 p.m.
Gore, who hit home runs on consecutive pitches for his first career multi-homer game, connected on his first grand slam to cap a seven-run third inning, as Carolina took a lead it would not relinquish. The Wilmington native added a solo shot in the fifth for the seventh multi-home run game by a Tar Heel this season.
Regional Most Outstanding Player Dustin Ackley went 3-for-5 with three runs scored, two RBI and his career-best 21st home run in the sixth. Ben Bunting, who posted multi-hit games in all three regional contests, and Ryan Graepel, who drove in two, added two hits apiece. Senior Mike McKee singled in the ninth in his first career postseason at-bat.
Warren (8-2) allowed just five hits and did not issue a walk in 6 2/3 innings to improve to 30-4 in his career and move into a tie for second place on the Tar Heels' career victory list. The New Bern native, who retired 10 straight Jayhawks at one point, moved to 4-1 in his career in NCAA action and lowered his postseason ERA to 2.45 in 36 2/3 innings.
Nate Striz, Logan Munson and Patrick Johnson combined to allow just one run over the final 2 1/3 out of the bullpen.
Kansas left-hander Travis Blankenship (3-2) allowed six runs on five hits over just 2 2/3 innings to suffer the loss for the Jayhawks (39-24). Tony Thompson was 2-for-4 with a solo home run in the ninth for Kansas' lone run.
After both teams stranded a runner at third in the early innings, the Tar Heels broke through with seven in the third to end the day for Blankenship and essentially punch their ticket to the Super Regional round for the fifth time in the last seven years.
Jacob Stallings singled off the wall in left to start the rally, Bunting was hit by a pitch and Ackley walked to load the bases with just one away. Kyle Seager put Carolina on the board with a two-run single through the right side, and Graepel followed with an RBI single to left for a three-run cushion.
Blankenship plunked Levi Michael to load the bases for the second time in the inning, and Gore greeted Kansas reliever Brett Bollman with a first-pitch grand slam to right center for a 7-0 lead. The grand slam was the fifth of the season for Carolina.
Gore and Ackley hit solo home runs in the fifth and sixth innings to push the lead to 9-0. Gore hit his second first-pitch home run off Bollman off the scoreboard in left center, and Ackley sent a 3-1 Paul Smyth offering to right center for a nine-run cushion for Warren.
The Tar Heels tacked on two more in the eighth on RBI groundouts from Seager and Graepel. Bunting drew a leadoff walk and Ackley doubled to left center to put two in scoring position before the back-to-back run-scoring ground balls pushed the lead 11-0.
Gore singled and scored on an RBI single from Ackley in the ninth for the Tar Heels' final run.
