Tar Heels edge Seahawks in 12 innings

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — Click the icon above to see game highlights from UNC’s 6-5 win in baseball on Wednesday over UNCW.

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WILMINGTON, NC (UNCW) — UNCW’s 10-game winning streak came to a halt on Wednesday as North Carolina was able to take advantage of a balk to score the go-ahead run in a 6-5 win over the Seahawks at Brooks Field.

The Tar Heels won their third straight to improve to 26-15 while the Seahawks dropped to 28-9.

UNC reliever Trent Thornton (3-4) earned the win after holding the Seahawks scoreless over 2.2 innings. He scattered two hits and walked two while striking out three.

Freshman reliever Justin Crump (0-1) took the loss after allowing a run on two hits and a walk in 1.1 innings out of the bullpen.

Brian Miller finished with three hits to lead North Carolina, who built a 5-1 lead after 2 and 1/2 innings.

Steven Linkous was one four Seahawks with two hits. He walked three times and stole three bases. Casey Golden added two hits and drove in two.

Up next: The Seahawks visit Elon this weekend in conference play. The series opens Friday with a 6:30 p.m. start.

How it happened: Tyler Ramirez opened the 12th with a single and moved into scoring position following a sacrifice bunt. Crump then sent a pitch to the back stop during an intentional walk to move Ramirez to third. A throwing error on a swinging third strike put runners on the corners and Ramirez scored one batter later when Crump failed to complete a throw to first on an attempted pickoff.

Inside the box score: Both teams went 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position … UNCW held UNC to one hit with two outs. Notes: UNCW’s 10-game winning streak was the longest since 2008 … 12 innings was the longest game since 2012 when the Seahawks and VCU played a 12-inning affair … Eight were used by the Seahawks … Wednesday’s attendance was a season-high 3,581.

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Wednesday’s High School Scoreboard

SOFTBALL
SOUTH LENOIR 8 – EAST DUPLIN 1
SOUTH COLUMBUS 23 – ST. PAULS 1
WEST BRUNSWICK 4 – LANEY 3

BOYS LACROSSE

HOGGARD 16 – WEST BRUNSWICK 0
DONOVAN JONES & TUCKER BROWN HAD 3 GOALS APIECE

GIRLS SOCCER

WHITEVILLE 9 – ST. PAULS 0
BASEBALL
NORTH BRUNSWICK 4 – SOUTH BRUNSWICK 0

SOUTH COLUMBUS 12 – ST. PAULS 10

HOGGARD 10 – SWANSBORO 3

WEST BRUNSWICK 13 – NORTH MYRTLE BEACH 2

TRASK 12 – WALLACE-ROSE HILL 11
ASHLEY 5 – DIXON 2

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Click the icon above to see ECU-Duke highlights. This includes a nice play in the field from former West Brunswick Trojan Hunter Allen.

GREENVILLE, NC (DUKE) – Tied 2-2 heading to the bottom of the 10th, the Pirates’ Luke Lowery laced a walkoff single to center to lift East Carolina to the 3-2 victory over Duke Wednesday evening at Lewis Field at Clark-LeClair Stadium.

Duke (22-18) outhit East Carolina (26-16), 10-9, but the Blue Devils could not capitalize on their opportunities early and left eight runners on over the first five innings. The Pirates retired the final 10 Blue Devil batters they faced to close out the game.

“I thought I was a terrifically pitched ballgame,” said head coach Chris Pollard. “Through nine innings, it was one of the best defensive games we’d played all year. Reality is we didn’t lose it in the bottom of the 10th. We lost it in the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth when we didn’t have a very good offensive approach. I thought we had a good approach through five innings; we battled and we put guys in scoring position. We didn’t maintain that approach over the second half of the game.”

Freshman Peter Zyla registered his first career three-hit game, collecting singles in the first, fifth and seventh innings. Redshirt senior Mike Rosenfeld and sophomore Cris Perez also notched two hits each.

After Duke left the bases loaded in the top half, East Carolina plated the game’s first run in the bottom of the second. Catcher Travis Watkins reached on a fielder’s choice and scored on a Jackson Mims two-out RBI single. The base knock was the first of three hits for Mims.

The Blue Devils answered in the fourth to tie the game at one-all. Freshman Justin Bellinger led off with a single and ultimately crossed home on a Jalen Phillips RBI double.

The back-and-forth action continued as the Pirates scored a second run to regain the lead in the bottom of the fourth. A leadoff walk to Luke Lowery proved costly. Lowery advanced to second after Watkins was hit by a pitch and stole third. Garrett Brooks then bounced an infield single, allowing Lowery to score.

Zyla, Rosenfeld and C. Perez each picked up their second hit of the night to once again knot the score. Zyla singled and C. Perez drove in his team-leading 24th RBI of the season with an RBI single up the middle.

The scoring abated after the fifth as neither team could scratch out another run. Duke relievers Ryan Day, Sarkis Ohaniancovered the Mitch Stallings final 4.2 innings, allowing just three base runners during that span.

After Kenny Koplove (1-2) tossed a scoreless ninth, the Blue Devils headed to extra innings for the fourth time this season. Designated hitter Reid Love singled with one out to begin the rally. Following a walk to right fielder Eric Tyler, Lowery provided the game-winning line drive to end the game. Duke is now 2-2 in extra-inning contests this season.

ECU reliever Jimmy Boyd (5-7) earned the win after throwing two hitless innings to close out the game.

Duke returns to Jack Coombs Field this weekend to take on Virginia Tech in a three-game series Friday-Sunday, April 24-26.