Game 1 of the Chapel Hill Super Regional was going to give either UNC – or West Virginia – a major leg up en route to the College World Series.
Sure, there’s been plenty of comebacks over the years, but each game is extra crucial when a series is just best of three.
The visiting Mountaineers took a 6-4 lead in the sixth inning of Game 1, while ace Derek Clark dominated the Diamond Heels on the mound. North Carolina would need its hitters to come up with some late-inning magic of their own, while pitching would have to shut down West Virginia’s hot bats.
Vance Honeycutt vaulted North Carolina into Game 2 with a 1-game lead, blasting a ninth-inning, walk-off home run and sending Boshamer Stadium into a frenzy.
UNC needed one of its pitchers to step up after Shea Sprague, Matthew Matthijs and Ben Peterson struggled on the mound.
Try Matt Poston, who struggled in Game 1 of the Chapel Hill Regional against Long Island University.
Poston delivered his best outing of the year, working out of a jam and striking out four Mountaineers in three perfect innings.
Now, Poston and his Diamond Heels teammates will be heading to Omaha. It’s a moment Poston dreamed about since he grew up watching it.
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“My favorite memory growing up was probably the first year my dad got to be my baseball coach,” Poston said. “I thought it was just the coolest thing ever – my dad was in charge of coaching me and making me and my friends better. Growing up, we definitely watched the College World Series all the time. I always thought it’d be cool to play there – now being to to actually play there is really cool.”
North Carolina opens up its College World Series run on Friday, June 14 at 2 p.m. ET against an ACC rival – the University of Virginia. The Cavaliers won two of three over Easter Weekend, but UNC salvaged the final game by scoring 12 runs.
If Poston can pitch like he did in the Super Regional, the Diamond Heels can go a long way. I’m excited for their journey.
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