University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
Longwood
No. 24 Tar Heels Sweep Doubleheader At Longwood
April 14, 2010 | Softball
April 14, 2010
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. --- Thanks to strong pitching and timely hitting the No. 23 North Carolina Tar Heels (34-13) swept Longwood (29-15) in both games of Wednesday's doubleheader in Farmville, Virginia. In game one, three Tar Heel home runs, including a Kelli Wheeler grand slam, propelled Carolina to an 8-0 win over the Lancers in five innings. In the second game of the day, Carolina rallied in the top of the seventh inning, adding a late run to nudge Longwood, 3-2. Senior pitcher Danielle Spaulding earned the win in both games and pitched a combined total seven innings while only allowing two hits in the two games.
Game One
A six-run first inning powered the Tar Heels over Longwood in the first game of the doubleheader on Wednesday afternoon. Carolina added two more runs in the second inning to give the Tar Heels an early eight-run lead. Pitcher Danielle Spaulding pitched five innings shutting down Longwood without a run. With Carolina up by eight runs after five innings the game was halted due to the NCAA's Eight-Run-Ahead Rule.
Carolina batters Anna Roberts, Kelli Wheeler and Brittany McKinney all connected on home runs in the game.
Roberts' homer came in the first inning with leadoff hitter Christine Knauer on base. Roberts deposited the ball over the left field fence and gave Carolina an early 2-0 lead.
Wheeler followed Roberts with a grand slam later in the first inning. With McKinney, Ally Blake and Stephanie Murad all reaching base, Wheeler homered to opposite field for her second grand slam of the year (Wheeler's previous grand slam came during UNC's 17-7 victory over South Carolina on 3/30) and gave Carolina a commanding 6-0 lead in the top of the first. The home run is Wheeler's 11th this season, the most of any Tar Heel batter.
McKinney continued Carolina's early-inning offensive outburst with another home run in the top of the second. The shot to right field scored Roberts, who had singled and stole a base earlier in the inning.
Spaulding earned the win for Carolina, her 14th of the season, for a complete game shut out. Spaulding held Longwood to only one hit during the game, on a double in the fourth inning. Of Longwood's 15 outs during the game, 10 came from Spaulding strikeouts. The Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. product continued her excellent pitching of late and has now allowed only two earned runs in the last 36 innings.
Knauer added to her stolen base total by nabbing a bag early in the first inning. The shortstop now has an ACC-leading 37 stolen bases on the year out of 39 attempts. The stolen bag is the 76th of Knauer's career, which ties her with Crystal Henderson for second-most all-time in Carolina softball history.
Game Two
North Carolina mounted a two-run lead in the top of the fifth before Longwood scored a run in each of the next two innings to tie the game at 2-2 after six innings. Carolina reclaimed the lead in the top of the seventh inning with a one-run rally to give the Tar Heels a 3-2 lead. Longwood could not respond in the bottom of the seventh and Carolina wins the game, 3-2.
Spaulding, starting game two at first base, provided Carolina with a solo home run in the fifth inning. The home run is Spaulding's seventh of the season and second in the last four games for the two-time All-America selection. The senior also added a single as the leadoff batter in the seventh inning to help start Carolina's late-inning rally. Freshman Chelsea Butler, pinch running for Spaulding in the seventh, scored the Tar Heels go-ahead run.
Roberts added two hits for Carolina including a double in the first inning. During today's doubleheader Roberts went 4 for 8 with two extra-base hits.
Third baseman Brittany Robinson batted 2 for 3 in the game, including putting the ball in play with two runners on in the seventh inning which was misplayed by Longwood's first baseman. The two-out error scored Butler from third base to give Carolina a one-run lead heading into the game's final frame.
Senior (18-11) Amber Johnson received the start for Carolina. Johnson blanked the Lancers for the first four innings before giving up a run in the fifth inning. To start the sixth inning, Johnson loaded the bases, before North Carolina turned to Spaulding for relief. Spaulding forced two outs to start the inning before yielding a single up the middle to score a run and tie the game at 2-2.
After Carolina's go-ahead run in the seventh inning, giving Carolina a 3-2 lead, Spaulding retired the Longwood top-of-the-order batters in order to give Carolina the victory. Spaulding received the win, her 15th of the season, for her two innings of relief.
With the win Carolina advances to 34-13 on the season and 12-6 in road games.
The Tar Heels return to action this weekend for a three-game series with Atlantic Coast Conference opponent Maryland (25-16, 3-6 ACC). Game times are set for 1 and 3 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.
Sunday's game is Senior Day with the celebration of Carolina Seniors: Amber Johnson, Christine Knauer, Stephanie Murad, Anna Roberts and Danielle Spaulding starting 15 minutes before the game. Come out and show your support for the dedication and success this remarkable group of seniors have accomplished during their careers.
