Heels Hold Off Late Surge To Win Finale, 7-5

Sunday, April 9

South Bend, Ind.

12:00 PM

North Carolina

31-11, 0

Notre Dame

21-15, 0

North Carolina

Notre Dame

April 9, 2017 | Softball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

By: UNC Athletic Communications

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
North Carolina (31-11, 10-5)	2	0	0	2	2	1	0	7	7	3
Notre Dame (21-15, 8-7)	0	0	0	0	1	3	1	5	10	0

South Bend, Ind. – Notre Dame fought back from a six-run deficit to get the go-ahead run on base in the bottom of the seventh, but North Carolina did not allow the Fighting Irish to complete the comeback, holding on for a 7-5 victory in the ACC series finale. With the win, UNC improves to 31-11 (10-5 ACC), while UND falls to 21-15, 8-7 ACC).

Senior Kendra Lynch led the game by going 3-for-4 with a two-run home run. Taylor Wike went 1-for-3 with a walk, two runs and two stolen bases, while Campbell Hutcherson, making just her second start in the offensive lineup, went 1-for-2 with a walk and two RBIs. Katie Bailiff had an RBI single and Micaela Abbatine singled, walked, stole third base and scored. Katelyn Shifflett, who drove in UNC's only run in Saturday's doubleheader, picked up a pair of sacrifice flies.

Brittany Pickett (16-2) tossed her second complete game of the series, allowing four earned runs on 10 hits and a walk without a strikeout, while adding a walk and a run at the plate.

Rachel Nasland (10-7) started for Notre Dame but went just 3.2 innings before being replaced by Katie Beriont. The junior, who hurled a no-hit gem one day earlier, allowed two runs on five hits and a walk over 1.1 innings. Caitlyn Brooks entered in the sixth but did not record an out, loading the bases with a hit batter and two walks, before Nasland returned to close out the game. Brooks was on the hook for one run in the sixth, while the Irish starter finished the day with four runs on just two hits and two walks with five strikeouts over 5.2 innings.

Wike led off the game with a walk and stole second, then Lynch put Carolina on the board by crushing her 16th home run of the season to make it 2-0 Heels before the Irish first came to the plate.

Morgan Reed legged out a triple to the gap in right center in the bottom of the first, and Caitlyn Brooks followed with what appeared to be an RBI single through the right side, but a hustle play by Hailey Cole in right got the force out at first to end the inning and save a run.

The Tar Heels got the first two runners on base in the top of the fourth, as Berlynne Delamora walked and Lynch singled for her second hit of the day. After pinch runners Leah Murray and Brittany West moved into scoring position with two outs, Notre Dame made a pitching change. Beriont pitched around Pickett to load the bases, then Hutcherson came through with a two-out, two-run single to left to make it 4-0 Carolina before she was thrown out trying to take second on the throw to the plate.

Abbatine and Wike led off the fifth with back-to-back singles, then executed a double steal to get into scoring position with no outs. Shifflett sent Abbatine home on a sacrifice fly, then Lynch got Wike to third with her third hit of the day. Bailiff kept the two-out rally going with an RBI single up the middle, making it 6-0 UNC before a ground out ended the frame.

Katie Marino led off the bottom of the fifth with a double to deep right center. Pickett got the next two batters to pop up, but Maddie McCracken came through with a two-out RBI hit to right to put Notre Dame on the board.

Brooks came in to pitch the sixth but hit Pickett then surrendered full-count walks to Hutcherson and Abbatine to load the bases with nobody out. She started 1-1 on Wike before Coach Gumpf made the call to bring the starter Nasland back into the circle. Shifflett picked up her second sac fly of the game to make it 7-1 Carolina, but the Irish starter kept the Heels without the big hit to strand three.

Four hits, including doubles by Brooks, Melissa Rochford and Kimmy Sullivan, led to three Irish runs in the bottom of the sixth, as Notre Dame cut the deficit in half, 7-4.

Pickett got the first batter out in the seventh inning, but the next pitch struck the home plate umpire in the head and led to a nearly 20-minute delay. The Fighting Irish regrouped when play resumed and took advantage of an error by Wike as Karley Wester reached safely. Ali Wester followed with an infield single, then Reed grounded to third base and Delamora tried to get the lead runner at third but was not in time. A wild pitch allowed UND to plate an unearned run before a walk re-loaded the bases with the go-ahead run on first base. Delamora then shut down Notre Dame's offense, snagging a line drive for the second out and fielding a grounder off the bat of Marino to close out Pickett's team-leading 16th win of the season by a final score of 7-5.

North Carolina returns home on Wednesday, April 12, for a midweek matchup with mid-major powerhouse USC Upstate. First pitch is set for 5 p.m.