May 18, 2002
ATLANTA – Clifton Remole’s two-out, three run double in the bottom of the eighth inning lifted eighth-ranked Georgia Tech (44-11, 14-8 ACC) to a 12-9 win over sixth-ranked North Carolina (38-17, 16-7) on Saturday afternoon at Russ Chandler Stadium. The Yellow Jackets rallied from an early 6-1 deficit to claim a victory over the Tar Heels for the second straight day.
With the score knotted at 9-9 after seven and a half innings, Jason Perry singled with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning to start the Tech rally. After Tyler Parker struck out, the Yellow Jackets loaded the bases with back to back walks to Matthew Boggs and Wes Rynders. Remole laced an 0-1 pitch from Michael Gross down the right field line that cleared the bases and gave Tech a 12-9 lead.
Tech reliever Jeff Watchko (10-1), one of five pitchers in the game, earned the win after recording the final five outs of the game. He worked out of jams in both the eighth and ninth innings, stranding five Tar Heels on base.
The Tar Heels jumped out to a 6-1 lead, scoring three time in both the first and second innings, including a three-run homer from Sean Farrell, his 13th of the season. Tech responded in the bottom of the second inning with a three-run shot from Wes Rynders, his second of the year, to cut the lead to 6-4. The Yellow Jackets scored three more times in the third, including a RBI double from Parker and RBI single from Boggs, to take a 7-6 lead.
North Carolina immediately answered with two runs in the top of the fourth inning to retake the lead at 8-7. Adam Greenberg doubled and scored on an error from Tech catcher Tyler Parker, while Russ Adams scored on Jeremy Cleveland’s RBI groundout.
The score remained 8-7 until Tech retook the lead in the bottom of the sixth, scoring two times to take a 9-8 lead. Parker had his second RBI double of the game, while Wes Rynders plated the go-ahead run with a RBI single to left field.
The Tar Heels tied the score at 9-9 in the top of the eighth inning. UNC loaded the bases with one out before Chris Maples tied the game with a RBI groundout.
The two teams combined for 28 hits and 18 walks in the game, including a season-high 10 walks by Georgia Tech pitching. Matt Murton went a perfect 4-for-4 in the game for the Yellow Jackets, Parker went 3-for-5, and Boggs, Rynders and Perry had two hits apiece. Rydners tied his career high with four RBI in the game.
Chad Prosser paced the Tar Heels with a four-hit performance, while Farrell drove in four runs in the loss. Gross (6-4) took the loss, allowing three runs on two hits and three walks in two innings of work.
Georgia Tech and North Carolina will conclude the three-game series on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. The game will be carried live on WREK-Radio (91.1 FM in Atlanta) and on the internet at www.ramblinwreck.com. Live scoring for the games will be available at www.ramblinwreck.com.
