BC Walked Off Twice in Extras at No. 12 UNC

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Eagles and Tar Heels combine for seven home runs in doubleheader

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The Boston College baseball team was swept in a doubleheader against No. 12 North Carolina by scores of 8-7 and 11-10 at Boshamer Stadium on Saturday. The Tar Heels (29-11, 12-8) won each game on a walk-off knock in the 11^th inning.

Two singles put two men aboard for the Tar Heels in the bottom of the 11^th of game one. With two down, first baseman Michael Busch nubbed a ball to the left of the mound that went past the charging third baseman for a hit and wandered to the edge of the outfield grass behind shortstop; allowing pinch-runner Angel Zarate to score the winning run from second on an error. Busch was credited with an infield single on the play.

Junior first baseman Jack Cunningham (South Riding, Va.) erased a two-run deficit with a three-run home run in the top of the ninth to put Boston College in front for a 7-6 win over No. 12 North Carolina. The Eagles led early and allowed five unanswered runs before the rally in the ninth.

UNC tied the game with three runs on back-to-back home runs by second baseman Dylan Enwiller and first baseman Michael Busch at the top of the order in the bottom of the third. The Tar Heels grabbed their first lead of the day in the fifth as left-fielder and nine-hole hitter Ashton McGee drew a leadoff walk and scored from third on a RBI-groundout to third off the bat of designated hitter Aaron Sabato.

Senior lefty Dan Metzdorf (Burlington, Mass.) outlasted UNC righty Tyler Baum but left the game in the seventh on the short-end. Metzdorf surrendered six runs, three earned, on four hits and three walks, while striking out five. Baum pitched just 5.1 innings and allowed nine hits and three walks, but limited BC to four runs, three earned, with four strikeouts.

The Eagles led briefly in the nightcap after three singles produced a run in the top of the third. The Tar Heels answered with six runs on just two hits against freshman RHP Mason Pelio (San Diego, Calif.). An error opened the inning and after two runs were scored on a wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk, shortstop Danny Serretti delivered a grand slam to right.

BC would go on to homer in three consecutive innings. Junior shortstop Brian Dempsey (Potomac, Md.), junior center fielder Dante Baldelli (Cumberland, R.I.) and Cunningham all hit solo home runs.

Boston College would bat around in the seventh after Cunningham’s leadoff home run. The Eagles plated four runs in the inning on six hits. Freshman right fielder Sal Frelick (Lexington, Mass.) delivered two to the plate with a bases-loaded single to cut the deficit to one.

The Eagles scored in five consecutive innings from the fifth through ninth innings; tying it with two runs in the top of the ninth. Senior third baseman Jake Alu (Hamilton, N.J.) and Frelick walked and eventually came around to score.

Redshirt-sophomore righty Michael Marzonie (Greenwich, Conn.) pitched 3.2 innings of relief to end the game for BC. He kept the Tar Heels off the board in each of his first three innings of work. A one-out hit-by-pitch to center fielder Dylan Harris would come around to score from first on a two-out double off the bat of Sabato for the walk-off win.

DETAILS
Score: Boston College 7-10, North Carolina 8-11
Records: Boston College (19-21, 7-13), North Carolina (29-11, 12-8)
Location: Boshamer Stadium (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Attendance: 1,904

GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS

The Eagles opened the game with three straight singles; the third of which was a Dempsey RBI-single.
BC picked up two bases-loaded sacrifice-flies in the second inning.
Metzdorf pitched a 1-2-3 second on nine pitches; capped by a strikeout.
Cunningham turned a two-run deficit into a one-run lead with a three-run home run in the top of the ninth.

GAME TWO HIGHLIGHTS

Three singles, including a RBI-knock by Martellini, push across the first run of the game in the third.
Dempsey crushed a leadoff home run to left in the fifth.
Baldelli bashed a solo home run of the top of the UNC scoreboard in left-center in the sixth.
Cunningham homered for the second time on the day; a leadoff-jack to right in the seventh.

GAME NOTES

Cunningham extended his career-best reached base streak to 18 games with a first-inning walk.
Cunningham’s career-best hit streak reached 12 with his go-ahead home run in the ninth; his sixth homer of the season.
Cunningham improved his reached base streak to 19 and hit streak to 13 with his seventh home run of the season in game two.
Cunningham homered in back-to-back games for the second time this season.
Galland posted his 11^th multi-hit game of the season and 28^th of his career.
Galland hit his fifth double of the season and 10^th of his career.
BC gave up back-to-back home runs for the first time since facing Santa Clara (2/17/18).
Frelick collected his 15^th multi-hit game of the season.
Frelick snapped BC’s 0-for-19 stretch at the plate dating back to March 20 with a two-run single in the seventh of game two.
Martellini picked up his ninth and 10^th multi-hit games of the season and 39^th and 40^th of his career.
Martellini hit his first triple of the season and sixth of his career.
Martellini drove in his 99^th career RBI in game two.
Metzdorf pitched his eighth game of six-plus innings in nine starts this season.
BC is 6-11 against ranked opponents this season.
BC played extra innings for the first time since a 5-4 loss in 10 innings at Notre Dame (4/27/18).
Dempsey hit his second home run of the season.
Morissette hit his 13^th double and 14^th multi-hit game of the season.
Baldelli hit his second home run of the season and third of his career while collecting his fifth multi-hit game of the season and 17^th of his career.