The Tar Heels huddle on the mound.
Photo by: ANTHONY SORBELLINI
Lucas: Arizona Rapid Reactions (G3)
June 8, 2025 | Baseball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the super regional finale.
By Adam Lucas
1. Heartbreaking finish to an excellent season, as Arizona capitalized in the eighth inning and held on for a 4-3 win. It's a devastating end after things were feeling so good on Friday afternoon. Twenty percent of eventual super regional winners don't win game one. Unfortunately, that was the case in Chapel Hill.
2. That eighth inning will be one Tar Heel players, coaches and fans are thinking about for a long time. With defensive miscues and a couple pitches that maybe weren't completely executed, it was a dramatic turnaround of a game Carolina entered the inning leading 3-1 and left trailing 4-3.
3. It's also true, though, that over the last two days the UNC offense missed some chances they'd taken advantage of on Friday (and at other times this year). The Heels were 2-for-13 with runners on base on Sunday. There were clearly some defensive flaws and a couple pitches you'd like to have back. But it was an overall team breakdown. UNC was 5-for-31Â at the plate in the final game of the season, grounded into two double plays, and couldn't take advantage of five walks handed out by Arizona pitchers. The Wildcats got the job done on the mound on the road, and they're going to Omaha because of it.
4. What else could you possibly say about Ryan Lynch? The Tar Heel freshman was terrific out of the bullpen all season. Now, at the end of the year, he's started three games and excelled: the ACC championship game against Clemson, the decisive regional final against Oklahoma, and the decisive super regional against Arizona. In those three starts, he's thrown a combined 16 innings and allowed four earned runs.
5. And remember, he's doing it with two pitches: a heavy fastball and a slider. On Sunday against the Wildcats, the arsenal was heavily tilted towards the fastball, including a huge sixth inning in which he breezed through the dangerous top of the Arizona order with all fastballs in a 3-1 game. He's going to be a huge part of Carolina's rotation next season.
6. Things unraveled in the eighth. An error on a potential double play ball opened the door for Arizona, and then, with Walker McDuffie on the mound, a weird play on a collision at first base following a bunt plated a run for the visitors. With the bases loaded and one out, the Tar Heels turned to Aidan Haugh to face Arizona's three hitter, Mason White, who lined a two-run single that gave the Wildcats their first lead (credit White, one of Arizona's best players, for the big swing when they needed it). Haugh did wriggle out of the jam with a double play ball, but damage was done. Only one of Arizona's three runs in the inning was earned.
7. The lone Carolina offense came courtesy of a Van De Brake three-run homer. Remember that the Heels weren't in position to win the game going into the eighth without his big swing. Three of Carolina's five hits came in that inning--the other two were singles by Carter French and Kane Kepley that set up the homer.
8. In a game when they needed to find a way to create any possible run, the Tar Heel offense was victimized by a couple of double plays that short-circuited what appeared to be possible big innings. One came in the second and one came in the sixth. Of course, the Arizona defense also had to execute those plays.
9. That brings to an end, in one of the most painful ways possible, what has been an excellent season. It's an unfortunate reality of college baseball that many fans only pay attention in the postseason, and so their main takeaway from this year will be what happened on Sunday afternoon. But 2025 was much more than that. Everyone's ultimate goal is ending the year in Omaha. Carolina won't do that this year, and that is frustrating. But it was also a group that experienced several months of extended success, individual standouts, and an ACC championship. This loss hurts and there were numerous ways to avoid it. That's the case with almost every single season-ending loss that happens. In a couple weeks, though, some of the positives will matter again.
1. Heartbreaking finish to an excellent season, as Arizona capitalized in the eighth inning and held on for a 4-3 win. It's a devastating end after things were feeling so good on Friday afternoon. Twenty percent of eventual super regional winners don't win game one. Unfortunately, that was the case in Chapel Hill.
2. That eighth inning will be one Tar Heel players, coaches and fans are thinking about for a long time. With defensive miscues and a couple pitches that maybe weren't completely executed, it was a dramatic turnaround of a game Carolina entered the inning leading 3-1 and left trailing 4-3.
3. It's also true, though, that over the last two days the UNC offense missed some chances they'd taken advantage of on Friday (and at other times this year). The Heels were 2-for-13 with runners on base on Sunday. There were clearly some defensive flaws and a couple pitches you'd like to have back. But it was an overall team breakdown. UNC was 5-for-31Â at the plate in the final game of the season, grounded into two double plays, and couldn't take advantage of five walks handed out by Arizona pitchers. The Wildcats got the job done on the mound on the road, and they're going to Omaha because of it.
4. What else could you possibly say about Ryan Lynch? The Tar Heel freshman was terrific out of the bullpen all season. Now, at the end of the year, he's started three games and excelled: the ACC championship game against Clemson, the decisive regional final against Oklahoma, and the decisive super regional against Arizona. In those three starts, he's thrown a combined 16 innings and allowed four earned runs.
5. And remember, he's doing it with two pitches: a heavy fastball and a slider. On Sunday against the Wildcats, the arsenal was heavily tilted towards the fastball, including a huge sixth inning in which he breezed through the dangerous top of the Arizona order with all fastballs in a 3-1 game. He's going to be a huge part of Carolina's rotation next season.
6. Things unraveled in the eighth. An error on a potential double play ball opened the door for Arizona, and then, with Walker McDuffie on the mound, a weird play on a collision at first base following a bunt plated a run for the visitors. With the bases loaded and one out, the Tar Heels turned to Aidan Haugh to face Arizona's three hitter, Mason White, who lined a two-run single that gave the Wildcats their first lead (credit White, one of Arizona's best players, for the big swing when they needed it). Haugh did wriggle out of the jam with a double play ball, but damage was done. Only one of Arizona's three runs in the inning was earned.
7. The lone Carolina offense came courtesy of a Van De Brake three-run homer. Remember that the Heels weren't in position to win the game going into the eighth without his big swing. Three of Carolina's five hits came in that inning--the other two were singles by Carter French and Kane Kepley that set up the homer.
8. In a game when they needed to find a way to create any possible run, the Tar Heel offense was victimized by a couple of double plays that short-circuited what appeared to be possible big innings. One came in the second and one came in the sixth. Of course, the Arizona defense also had to execute those plays.
9. That brings to an end, in one of the most painful ways possible, what has been an excellent season. It's an unfortunate reality of college baseball that many fans only pay attention in the postseason, and so their main takeaway from this year will be what happened on Sunday afternoon. But 2025 was much more than that. Everyone's ultimate goal is ending the year in Omaha. Carolina won't do that this year, and that is frustrating. But it was also a group that experienced several months of extended success, individual standouts, and an ACC championship. This loss hurts and there were numerous ways to avoid it. That's the case with almost every single season-ending loss that happens. In a couple weeks, though, some of the positives will matter again.
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