University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Boston College
No. 18 Tar Heels Take Two From Boston College
March 28, 2009 | Softball
March 28, 2009
Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - The No. 18 North Carolina softball team used the long ball effectively Saturday afternoon at Anderson Stadium in claiming a pair of key Atlantic Coast Conference victories over Boston College (9-17, 0-2 ACC). The Tar Heels (30-7, 6-2 ACC) took the opener 6-2 as both Breanna Brown and Danielle Spaulding homered, before they claimed a 3-1 win in the second game as Whitney Allen drove in all three runs. The Tar Heels and Eagles will match up at 1 p.m. on Sunday in the series finale.
With the pair of wins the 2009 squad becomes the 12th consecutive team to reach the 30-win plateau and the 23rd team in school history to accomplish the feat.
Breanna Brown put the Tar Heels in front in the first game when she doubled in a pair of runs in the bottom of the second with a perfectly placed ball over the head of the shortstop scoring both pinch runner Brittany Robinson and Kelsey Green to post starter Lisa Norris to an early lead.
Danielle Spaulding quickly made it a 3-0 lead in the third when she connected on her sixth home run of the year, an opposite field blast. Boston College cut the deficit to just one with a single run in the top of the fourth and another one in the sixth before the Heels blew the game open with a three-run sixth highlighted by Brown's fourth home run of the year a three-run shot to right center.
Norris earned the win in the opener improving to 14-4 on the year, while Brown paced the offense with her five RBI performance. Christine Knauer, Emily Troup and Danielle Spaulding all contributed hits in the winning effort.
Spaulding took to the circle in game two looking to continue her strikeout barrage and did just that racking 13 in another complete game performance.
After three scoreless innings Whitney Allen drove in Brown with a two-out double down the left field line giving the Tar Heels a 1-0 lead. Allen would come to the plate again in the bottom half of the sixth with Spaulding on first after drawing a free pass. The Fayetteville, N.C., native drove a pitch over the left center field fence for her first home run of the season giving Carolina a 3-0 advantage with just three outs to go in the contest.
oston College did not go quietly as Dani Weir connected on a 1-1 pitch and sent it over the wall for a solo home run cutting the deficit to two (3-1). Spaulding settled down setting the next batter down on strikes before forcing a routine ground out to end the contest and give Carolina the sweep.
Spaulding improved to 13-2 on the year with the win as Allen contributed half the Tar Heels hits and all three RBIs. Spaulding and sophomore Dani Manko each tallied hits in the win.
The Tar Heels and Eagles will meet up at 1 p.m. in the final game of the three-game series on Sunday.
