Pitching Leads The Way In Win Over VMI

Tuesday, March 15

Chapel Hill

4 p.m.

North Carolina

15-2

VMI

8-8

VMI

North Carolina

Photo by: ANTHONY SORBELLINI

March 15, 2022 | Baseball

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CHAPEL HILL – Shaddon Peavyhouse and Davis Palermo held VMI hitless over the final five innings and struck out eight, while Tomas Frick drove in a pair of runs to lead No. 15 North Carolina to a 5-1 victory over VMI at Boshamer Stadium on Tuesday.

Peavyhouse (2-1) picked up his second win of the season, tossing two scoreless innings and striking out three. Palermo fanned a career-high five batters in three innings of relief to record his first career save. VMI starter Jaxon Lloyd (1-2) took the loss.

The Diamond Heels (15-2) struck first with a run in the third inning when Tomas Frick singled to drive home Vance Honeycutt, who drew a one-out walk and moved up to second on a failed pick off attempt.

VMI (8-8) answered with a run in the top half of the fourth inning, but Carolina countered with a three-run bottom half of the frame with only a single hit.

Hunter Stokely led off the inning with a single and later scored on a bases loaded walk to Angel Zarate. Adam Jewell then balked to bring in Patrick Alvarez and move Zarate and Honeycutt up a base. Frick then followed with an RBI-ground out.

Danny Serretti doubled into the left corner to open the bottom of the fifth and Mac Horvath singled up the middle to bring Serretti home and cap the Diamond Heels' scoring.

Peavyhouse entered in the top of the fifth and after hitting the leadoff batter, retired the next three batters in order. He returned for the sixth inning, struck out two and induced a ground out.

Palermo was brought into pitch in the seventh. He struck out two of the five hitters he faced in the inning, retired the side in order in the eighth and ninth innings.

NOTABLES
• Carolina extended its home winning streak to 19 games, dating back to the final four games of the 2021 season.
• The Diamond Heels improved to 30-2-1 all-time against VMI and won their 14^th straight game over the Keydets.
• Connor Ollio made his first start of the year, allowing one run on six hits with one strikeout in 4.0 innings.
• Zarate singled in the top of the first to extend his hitting streak to 17 games and his on base streak on 40 games. It was only the seventh time during his current hitting streak that he collected a single hit.
• Horvath drove in a run for the third time in the last three games.
• Frick recorded his 16^th and 17^th RBIs of the season, two more than he had during 53 games played last year.
• Johnny Castagnozzi didn't reach base for the first time this season.
• It was only the second time this season which no Carolina hitter got more than one hit (Feb. 27 at East Carolina).

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Frick singled to left field to drive home Honeycutt from second base in the bottom of the third (UNC 1, VMI 0).
• Brett Cook singled up the middle to plate Will Knight with the Keydets' only run in the top of the fourth inning (UNC 1, VMI 1).
• Zarate was hit by pitch with the bases loaded to score Stokely in the bottom of the fourth inning. Alvarez scored on a balk and Honeycutt scored on a ground out to second by Frick (UNC 4, VMI 1).
• Horvath singled up the middle to drive home Serretti from second base in the bottom of the fifth (UNC 5, VMI 1).

UP NEXT
The Diamond Heels are schedule to return to the field Wednesday, March 16, against Richmond. The first pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Boshamer Stadium.