No. 3 Tar Heels Clinch ACC Coastal Crown

Saturday, May 13

Blacksburg, Va.

12:00 PM

North Carolina

40-9, 20-5

Virginia Tech

21-28, 8-17

North Carolina

Virginia Tech

May 13, 2017 | Baseball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

By: UNC Athletic Communications

BLACKSBURG, Va. --- Tyler Lynn's two-run homer in the sixth gave No. 3 North Carolina the lead for good and Rodney Hutchison Jr. worked 4.2 scoreless innings of relief as the Tar Heels beat Virginia Tech 9-4 Saturday afternoon at English Field. The win, coupled with Virignia's loss to Miami, means the Tar Heels have clinched the ACC Coastal Division title outright for the first time since 2013.

Carolina (40-10, 20-6 ACC) dropped the second game of the day 8-4, but the earlier win guarantees the Tar Heels a top-2 seed at the ACC Championship later this month in Louisville. The division title is UNC's sixth since the league went to divisions starting in 2006.

Brandon Riley finished a double shy of the cycle in the opener and drove in three to lead the Tar Heel offense against a trio of Virginia Tech (22-28, 9-17 ACC) pitchers. His two-run triple in the second gave Carolina its first lead of the day against starter Connor Coward (5-3), but the Hokies would rally against J.B. Bukauskas.

Bukauskas allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits and struck out just two in 3.1 innings, his shortest outing of the year. With Tech leading 4-3 in the fourth, Hutchison entered with runners on second and third and escaped the jam with a short fly to center and a groundout. The sophomore righty continued to control the game from there, allowing just one hit and striking out four in 4.2 shutout frames to improve to 6-3.

Carolina tied the game in the fifth on Brian Miller's solo homer and took the lead for good on Lynn's blast in the sixth. UNC extended its lead with a three-run ninth in which the Tar Heels sent eight men to the plate and got RBI hits from Logan Warmoth and Ashton McGee.

Josh Hiatt worked a 1-2-3 ninth to secure Carolina's 40th win of the season. The Tar Heels have now won at least 40 games 14 times in 19 seasons under head coach Mike Fox.

Virginia Tech used the home run to great effect in the second game of the day, clubbing three round-trippers off Gianluca Dalatri (5-3) in a 9-4 victory. Jack Owens and Tom Stoffel homered in the first and Nick Anderson added a two-run shot in the third to make it 6-2.

Dalatri allowed season highs of eight runs and 12 hits over 5.0 innings and suffered just his second ACC loss of the year. Kit Scheetz scattered nine hits over 6.1 for the Hokies to improve to 4-2. Stoffel came in from right field to pitch in the seventh and got the final eight outs to earn the hosts a split of the doubleheader.

Warmoth, who hit a towering homer in the seventh, and Kyle Datres each had three hits to lead UNC in the nightcap.

Carolina will look to secure its ninth consecutive conference series win in the finale Sunday at 1 p.m.