University of North Carolina Athletics
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Virginia
No. 13 UNC Evens Series With 8-1 Win At No. 25 UVA
April 17, 2016 | Baseball
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. --- Home runs by Kyle Datres and Eli Sutherland and 11 strikeouts from J.B. Bukauskas powered No. 13 North Carolina to an 8-1 win over No. 25 Virginia Saturday afternoon at Davenport Field. Bukauskas followed last week's 13-strikeout performance with another gem, allowing just one run on four hits in seven innings to improve to 6-1 on the year.
Bukauskas and Virginia's Adam Haseley (6-1) were locked in a pitcher's duel through four scoreless innings before Datres' second home run of the year put the Tar Heels in front in the fifth. Carolina (25-10, 9-8 ACC) added four more in the sixth thanks to a pair of errors, a bases-loaded walk and a balk.
Sutherland capped the scoring with a line drive out to left, a three-run shot that was his fourth homer of the year. He, Datres and Adam Pate all had two hits and two runs scored, as the Tar Heels finished with seven hits and drew 10 walks.
Virginia (22-15, 8-9 ACC) got its lone run of the day in the sixth on Pavin Smith's RBI double, but Bukauskas and a trio of Carolina relievers kept the Wahoos off the scoreboard the rest of the way.
Bukauskas, pitching in his home state for the first time in 2016, worked out of trouble in the first with a pair of strikeouts. He would go on to strike out the side in the second and get two each in the fourth and fifth en route to his fourth double-digit punchout performance of the season. In 52.2 innings of work, the sophomore from Ashburn, Virginia, has an ACC-leading 79 strikeouts. At 13.50 Ks per nine innings, Bukauskas is tops in that category nationally among starters.
Brett Daniels worked a scoreless eighth and Spencer Trayner got the final three outs to finish his team-leading 20th appearance of the year.
Carolina will attempt to win its first series vs. Virginia since 2012 Sunday at noon when Fredericksburg native Jason Morgan faces off against UVA closer-turned-starter Alec Bettinger.
