CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Georgia Tech baseball scored two in the ninth and forced bases-loaded and two outs put the tying run 90 feet away, but a flyout stalled the comeback effort as it fell 5-4 to No. 20 North Carolina on Friday afternoon at Boshamer Stadium.
The Yellow Jackets (16-5, 3-1 ACC) struck first on a Drew Burress solo home run in the first inning to put him at 14 on the season. Tech then went up 2-0 in the second on an RBI double from Carson Kerce.
But the Tar Heels (19-4, 5-2 ACC) battled back, scoring five unanswered over the next two innings to create its lead.
From there, both bullpens battled with Tech’s combination of RHP Terry Busse, RHP Brett Thomas, RHP Ben King and RHP Michal Kovala combining for four one-hit innings to keep the deficit at three runs.
Facing familiar territory, Tech’s offense went to work, loading the bases and having Matthew Ellis draw an RBI walk to score its first run. Then Mike Becchetti drove home Trey Yunger on a sac fly to close the gap to one. Cam Jones then drew a two-out walk to reload the bases before Parker Brosius popped up a 2-2 pitch.
Kerce and Yunger led the way with two hits apiece. Tech finished with nine hits on the day, but left 12 men on, having only one hit with runners in scoring position.
UNC was led by Alberto Osuna, who had two hits, including a two-RBI double. RHP Matthew Matthijs (9-1) received the win, pitching 4.0 innings of one-hit work. UNC finished with seven left on and 2-for-6 with RISP.
Georgia Tech will continue its series against North Carolina on Saturday, March 23. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. and will be broadcast live on ACC Network Extra. With weather in the area, check ramblinwreck.com and @GTBaseball on X for any schedule updates.