CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Tied at 6-6 in the fifth inning, Stanford (11-2, 1-0 ACC) got a solo home run from Jimmy Nati and a grand slam from Brandon Larson to plate six in the frame and blow the game open en route to a 13-9 victory over No. 4 North Carolina (13-1, 1-0 ACC) on Friday night in Stanford’s inaugural ACC contest.
The home runs were the second of the season for both players, with Larson having now homered in back-to-back games. The native of Rocklin, Calif. finished the contest 2-for-5 with a run scored, the homer and a career-high six RBIs.
In a game touted as a matchup between two of the top pitchers in the nation in Matt Scott and Jason DeCaro, both teams got off to strong offensive starts on Friday. The Tar Heels jumped out to an early 3-0 lead with three runs in the first, but Scott ultimately settled in and allowed the Cardinal offense to draw even with two in the second and one in the third. Freshman Charlie Bates provided the big hit in the second, lofting a two-RBI double off the wall in the left field, before Charlie Saum lined a sac fly to left to tie the game in the third.
The two teams traded three runs in the fourth inning, including a two-RBI single from Larson with two outs in the top of the frame.
After plating the six aided by the long balls in the fifth inning, the Cardinal added one more in the sixth as Temo Becerra punched a run-scoring double into left-center field to chase home Brady Reynolds for the third time on Friday.
Making his fourth start of the season, Scott worked 3 2/3 innings, allowing six runs (five earned) on seven hits and three walks with four strikeouts, before not factoring into the decision.
Opposite Scott, DeCaro was saddled with the loss and dropped to 3-1 after allowing eight runs (seven earned) on seven hits and three walks while striking out five.
Stanford once again got big outs from its bullpen as Ty Uber, who was credited with the victory to move to 1-0 on the season, worked 1 1/3 scoreless innings before Trevor Moore carried the torch for the next three scoreless. Moore struck out four batters over his time on the hill, sending the Cardinal to the ninth with a 13-6 lead.
North Carolina managed to make things a bit interesting in the final stanza, plating three runs and forcing Stanford to summon its closer Aidan Keenan for the final three outs. Keenan, who celebrated a birthday on Friday, retired all three batters faced to secure the Cardinal victory in a non-save situation.
Stanford will look…
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