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Efficient Tar Heels Topple UNCG, 5-2
March 31, 2016 | Softball
CHAPEL HILL – Carolina softball posted its second-straight victory on Wednesday night, using efficient defense and two home runs to defeat nearby UNCG, 5-2. The win was UNC's sixth straight over the Spartans, as Carolina evened its season record at 17-17. With the loss, UNCG dropped to 22-12.
“We played two really solid, back-to-back games,” said head coach Donna J. Papa. “I feel like we're finally the team that I thought we had going into the beginning of this. I think they're playing with confidence. Both of the teams we beat were on winning streaks and came in with a lot of confidence and I think that we've just had really good performances on the mound from Kendra.”
“I thought it was a good game and that we built off of last night,” said sophomore Taylor Wike. “We were swinging at good pitches. We attacked early and jumped up on them quick in the first inning. Our defense was great–I think we've played two games now error-free–which is what we've been trying to do.”
Berlynne Delamora reached base all three times with two singles, a hit by pitch and a run scored, and Kristen Brown and Taylor Wike both hit home runs. Lauren Fuller doubled as the designated player, and Darby Rosen drove in a run on a sacrifice fly.
“Taylor was outstanding tonight defensively. She's made some plays that were game changers for us. Kristen came out of her – not a slump, but – she hit so many home runs last year and she really needed a little bit to get out of what she was in. Now I think she feels like the monkey is off her back a little bit. I'm really happy for her and Taylor.”
Kendra Lynch (15-13) had another strong outing in the circle, going her second straight complete game without allowing a walk, keeping UNCG off the board save a pair of solo home runs with a total of seven hits with six strikeouts.
“That's fantastic, that's huge,” said Papa. “I think Kendra, six out of the seven innings, did not allow the first runner to get on and that is a key to the game. Walks kill you. When you have a walk, ninety percent of the time you're going to score. We had a lot of those last weekend with Florida State, and that was one of the differences in these two games. The defense had no errors – that's huge. Kendra had six strikeouts and shut down their bigger hitters. That's how you win a game.”
Stephanie Bryden (8-7) started for the Spartans and allowed all five runs, four earned, on five hits and three walks over the first 4.2 innings. Alicia Bazonski came in the bottom of the fifth and allowed two walks but no hits over the final 1.1 innings.
Taylor Wike put Carolina on the board early, drilling a two-run home run to right field in the bottom of the first.
The Tar Heels added an unearned run in the bottom of the second, as Fuller and Rosen walked, then Destiny DeBerry got to first on a throwing error, allowing pinch runner Katelyn Shifflett to cross the plate.
A solo home run by Lindsay Thomas, the 50th long ball of her career, in the top of the third put UNCG on the board, cutting the Tar Heels lead to 3-1.
The Tar Heels got the run back in the bottom of the fourth, as Delamora led off with a single and Fuller knocked a double off the wall in straightaway center. Rosen then drove in Delamora with a sacrifice fly deep to right.
Another home run made it 5-1 Carolina, as Brown clocked one to straightaway center for the 58th of her career.
The Spartans replied with a leadoff home run in the top of the seventh, followed by a double and a single to bring the tying run to the plate with no outs. Lynch struck out pinch hitter Marisa Sholtes for the first out of the inning, then a spectacular diving catch by Wike became a game-ending double play as Carolina held on to win, 5-2.
“Kendra came to me and said, 'This is going to be to you on the ground and you're going to get a double play right here,” said Wike about the final play of the game. “It wasn't on the ground but it still happened, so she had me ready for the play. When I caught it, I didn't think [the base runner] would be off of [first base] but [Kristen Brown] was yelling 'One, one, one!' so that helped a lot.”
The Tar Heels conclude their homestand this weekend with a visit from Louisville for a three-game ACC series. The weekend begins with a doubleheader at 1 p.m. on Saturday and concludes on Sunday with a new start time of Noon. All three games are scheduled to air live on ESPN3.
