#5-UNC 6 — Clemson 4 (F/14 Innings) — Game Summary
- After 13 innings of play, UNC head coach Scott Forbes decided it was time to go off script at the beginning of the 14th. The Tarheels, who came into the game with just three sacrifice bunts all season, dropped down one to put the potential go-ahead run in scoring position with just one out. After a walk and a Clemson error loaded the bases, North Carolina displayed they were capable of small ball by executing a perfect safety squeeze to go up 5-4. On the play, Tiger reliever Brendon Bennett made an errant throw to the plate that allowed Owen Hull to slide in safely at home, sealing the win for the Tarheels
- The Tigers went down in order in the bottom half of the 14th to end the marathon
- Prior to the excitement in the top of the 14th, Clemson had multiple opportunities to win the game in the 9th, 10th, and 11th.
- In the 9th, Clemson stranded runners at second and third. In the 10th, the Tigers loaded the bases, but Nate Savoie squibbed a ball out in front of home plate that ultimately resulted in a force out at home before Jack Crighton flew out to end the threat. In the 11th, Clemson left runners at first and second with the game still tied at 4-4
- All told, the two teams stranded thirty-two base runners, with the Tigers leaving seventeen men on base, six of them in extra innings
- Clemson carried a 4-2 lead into the eighth behind a solid start from Michael Sharman. The left-hander worked five innings, allowing just two runs on five hits with six strikeouts.
- UNC plated runs in the 8th and 9th to force extra innings in what turned out to be a bullpen game, but not quite the way coaches normally draw it up
- The two teams threw eight relievers into the contest, with the Tarheels getting the most bang for their buck as Caden Glauber tossed 101 pitches in six innings of work to close things out and notch his fourth win of the season
- The rubber match of this big ACC series is set for 12:30pm on Sunday afternoon at “Club DKS”