Zarate, Inclan Hit First Career Home Runs In 8-7 Loss To Liberty

Tuesday, March 9

Chapel Hill, N.C.

3 PM

North Carolina

7-4

Liberty

7-5

Liberty

North Carolina

Photo by: Rebecca Lawson

Zarate, Inclan Hit First Career Home Runs In 8-7 Loss To Liberty

March 9, 2021 | Baseball

Box Score Photo Gallery

By: UNC Athletic Communications

Box Score (PDF)

CHAPEL HILL – No. 18 North Carolina (7-4, 3-3) fell to Liberty (7-5, 0-0) 8-7 on a cloudy Tuesday afternoon on Bryson Field at Boshamer Stadium.

Liberty and North Carolina traded sacrifice flies in the first inning to tie the game 1-1. Liberty scored two runs on walks in the top of the second.

Angel Zarate and Justice Thompson hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the third to close Liberty's lead and tied the game at three runs.

The last time Tar Heels hit back-to-back home runs was also against Liberty when Michael Bush and Aaron Sabato accomplished the feat on June 2, 2019.

The Flames posted a four-spot in the fourth inning, which included a three-run home run that gave Liberty a 7-3 lead.

Clemente Inclan hit his first career home run in the fourth, which marked the Tar Heels third home run of the game.

After a quiet fifth inning, Eric Grintz scored on Zarate's single up the middle which cut the Liberty lead to two.

In the seventh, the Tar Heels countered Liberty's run with Jake Holtzapple's 2 RBI pinch-hit single, pulling Carolina within one with a score of 8-7 to end the inning.

Will Sandy started the game, and threw 1.1 innings. He allowed three runs on four hits. Caden O'Brien pitched for the final 2.1 innings and recorded five strikeouts, while only allowing one hit. Nik Pry, Davis Palermo and Caleb Cozart combined for seven strikeouts.

North Carolina returns to Boshamer Stadium on Friday, March 12 at 6 p.m. to begin the weekend series against Clemson.

Head Coach Scott Forbes
Opening statement
"I want to give Liberty credit, they came in, they played well, they took advantage of mistakes we made. There was a ball hit and we should've gotten an out at second base, and they got four runs in that inning. I believe we had a passed ball in the seventh and that gave them another run. So, all the guys are thinking 'well, this and that, I didn't hit, I didn't do this,' but at the end of the day you've got to pitch and you've got to defend. We just didn't pitch at the level that we're capable of, and they made us pay for it. They deserved to win the game and we didn't."