University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Georgia Tech
28-Game Win Streak Halted In Doubleheader Split
April 1, 2007 | Softball
April 1, 2007
ATLANTA --- Cassie Palmer hit a game-tying, two-run home run in the top of the seventh inning and No. 25 North Carolina added two runs in the top of the twelfth to put away Georgia Tech in a thrilling 4-2 win in the first game of a doubleheader Saturday before dropping a 5-4 decision in the nightcap at Glenn Field to stop a school-record 28-game win streak. The 28-game win streak is tied for the 16th longest by a Division I school in NCAA history.
Lisa Norris joined Palmer as a standout in the first game for the Tar Heels (35-9, 7-1 ACC), going 3-for-4 at the plate and pitching all 12 innings in the circle - yielding just two runs to the league's best hitting team in picking up her 21st win of the season. Palmer finished two-for-six with three RBI, helping UNC's cause even beyond her clutch hitting.
Despite the eventual loss, Georgia Tech (32-11, 4-4 ACC) struck first in game one, picking up a run in the bottom of the second on a Blair Shimandle double, then adding another run in the fourth to jump out to a 2-0 lead.
Tiffany Johnson, the starting pitcher for the Yellow Jackets, kept it that way until Carolina's last at-bat. That's when Norris was hit by a pitch and Palmer followed with a two-run jack to tie the game 2-2.
The game, thanks to quality pitching on both sides, stayed scoreless through the eleventh, before a Palmer double and a Breanna Brown single scored two runs for the Tar Heels in the twelfth inning. Georgia Tech was unable to answer against Norris, and UNC claimed a game one victory.
Game two started out well for Carolina as well; the Tar Heels managed two runs on Casey Testa's first home run of the season to start the scoring in the top of the first. The Yellow Jackets answered UNC's 2-0 lead, though, as they struck for four runs on three hits against UNC starter Amber Johnson in the bottom half of the frame to put themselves in front 4-2. Another run in the top half of the second for UNC narrowed the advantage to one run, but Georgia Tech responded with a run of their own in their half to restore the lead to two runs.
The Tar Heels fought back to add a run in the fourth inning as Marissa May scored on a Yellow Jacket error, cutting the gap to 5-4. But Whitney Humphreys proved to be the showstopper for UNC, allowing just one Tar Heel run in her five innings of work - including a hitless final three frames to shut the door on Carolina. With the loss, Johnson fell to 12-3 on the season, her first negative decision since a Feb. 23 loss to Auburn in extra innings.
Despite the loss, Ashley Oxendine had an impressive game two, collecting two of UNC's four hits on the day. Brown and Testa also recorded hits for the Tar Heels.
Carolina will conclude its weekend series with a Sunday rubbermatch against the Yellow Jackets at 1 p.m.
