Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- North Carolina secured a decisive 6-2 victory over Ole Miss in their College World Series opener, fueled by a three-run homer in the eighth inning.
- The Tar Heels' pitching duo of Jason DeCaro and relievers held strong, while Ole Miss's Taylor Rabe struck out seven in a quality start.
- Both teams now face critical next steps this Sunday, with one fighting to stay alive and the other aiming to build on early momentum.
It took awhile, but North Carolina pulled away to take down Ole Miss in both teams' opening matchup of the College World Series bracket. The Tar Heels won 6-2, snatching a lead in an eventful seventh inning before blowing things open with a three-run home run in the eighth via Colin Hynek.
The pitchers on both sides were the stars of the show in the first half of the outing. Ole Miss's Taylor Rabe went 5.2 innings allowing just two hits and one earned run with seven strikeouts. UNC's Jason DeCaro went 6.2 innings with two earned runs on five hits, striking out nine.
After Judd Utermark's RBI single in the top of the seventh put Ole Miss ahead 2-1, it was all Tar Heels. They answered with a sacrifice fly from Jake Schaffner and an RBI single from Gavin Gallaher to take the lead. Then Hynek's bomb put the game out of reach.
The Tar Heels continued their hot streak and can rest easy knowing their College World Series journey will continue for at least two more games. The Rebels, on the other hand, know they're on the brink.
Who does North Carolina play next in the College World Series bracket?
As the winner of Friday's game, UNC advances to face the winner of the first game of the tournament: The West Virginia Mountaineers. That matchup is on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET.
The Mountaineers were singing Country Roads after besting the Troy Trojans 7-5. They started things off with style, as lead-off man Armani Guzman stole home in the first inning. With the game tied up going into the bottom of the eighth inning, 5-5, Tyrus Hall broke the deadlock by hitting a ball over the shallow infield to bring home two runners. He finished with four RBI. Reliever Ian Korn took over for Chansen Cole after just 2.2 innings, going 6.0 himself with just one run allowed.
Who does Ole Miss play next?
Losing on Friday sent Ole Miss into the loser's bracket, where they will take on Troy, the losers of the first game of the day. That one is on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET.
Jimmy Janicki hit a game-tying home run in the top of the seventh inning to put pressure on West Virginia. However, reliever Zach Crotchfelt gave up the winning single in the eighth. That was an unfortunate ending for him as he rescued Troy after starter Benjamin Stubbs allowed five runs in 3.2 innings.
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