In every sense of the term, it was a midweek game.

South Carolina and North Carolina’s baseball teams spent all night in Charlotte toeing the line between trying to snag a nice non-conference win and not burning too many high leverage arms before conference series. It was back-and-forth, it lasted a tick under four hours, 393 pitches were thrown and the scoring never stopped.

At the end, though, North Carolina landed the last punch.

The Tar Heels won 13-8 in the annual midweek match-up against the Gamecocks, condemning South Carolina (17-9) to its fourth consecutive loss heading into a home series against No. 1 Tennessee starting on Friday.

For the second consecutive game, Nathan Hall started it out with a bang. South Carolina’s lead-off hitter opened the game with a home run, following on from his lead-off home run at Arkansas. Ethan Petry moved into the No. 2 hole as his protection for the first time all season, and he followed it up with another blast. It was Petry’s 50th career home run, putting him in a club with just Justin Smoak as South Carolina players ever to reach that plateau.

But the back-to-back home runs accounted for the last offense for a while. South Carolina scored just one run on one hit in innings two through five, mostly handcuffed by North Carolina (19-6) reliever Olin Johnson.

In the meantime, an outing like Johnson’s was the last thing Paul Maineiri could find. South Carolina used 12 different pitchers, nearly exhausting its entire complement of healthy arms excluding the three weekend starters. It was an inning-by-inning game, but nobody really found success. Ashton Crowther did throw one scoreless frame in the fifth and Caleb Jones did the same in the seventh, just his second outing of the season.

But after regular closer Brenden Sweeney started the game, Jackson Soucie relieved him and could only record five outs with three runs allowed as he gave up two.home runs. Freshmen Ryder Garino and Zach Russell both had rare rough outings after strong first halves of the season, giving up a combined five runs. Matthew Becker’s nightmare of a month continued as he gave up a bases loaded walk and a two-run double in the sixth.

North Carolina’s Luke Stevenson hit two home runs and drive in four runs, Tyson Bass homered and drove in four runs on his own and the offense drew 11 walks against the bleeding Gamecock pitching staff, a dozen pitchers who combined to throw an astounding 108 balls and allowed 27 baserunners.

Still, it was not enough to shake the tie until late. A furious South Carolina rally played four runs in the sixth and another in the seventh to tie the game 8-8, momentarily completing the comeback on a Beau Hollins RBI double.

The tie lasted five pitches.

Stevenson crushed a two-run home run after a four-pitch walk led off the eighth, the Tar Heels added on three more runs in the frame and South Carolina’s exhausted offense did not have another five-run rally in it.

The loss was South Carolina’s first midweek defeat of the campaign, dropping its record to 7-1 with six more to play, all at Founders Park.

Far more pressing issues exist, though, starting on Friday. South Carolina will have to flush this loss, recover its depleted pitching staff quickly and prepare for a three-game home series against No. 1 Tennessee.

*******************************************************************************************

Looking to continue the conversation? Join us on the insider’s forum to talk all things South Carolina baseball

Residents of Greenville and Pickens Counties have been ordered to evacuate as wildfires intensify across South Carolina.

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – A combination of drier air behind yesterday’s cold front and gusty winds has brought a return of elevated fire danger to South Carolina.

First Alert Headlines

• Warm and breezy at times this afternoon!
• Elevated fire danger has returned to South Carolina.
• Staying dry and warm through the rest of the work week.

First Alert Summary

Good morning! Yesterday’s cold front has moved offshore, with high pressure sliding in behind it. With high pressure in control, we’ve got a nice day ahead! Under sunny skies, high temperatures will reach the upper-70s.

Another weak cold front is marching towards the Midlands for the middle of this week. Today, since we’re ahead of the approaching boundary, wind gusts will pick up, which means elevated fire danger returns to the region. Please avoid any burning or lighting open flames while spending time outdoors.

Late tonight and into Wednesday, our weak cold front passes through. Our atmosphere is moisture-starved, which means we’re staying dry. However, this front will be effective in dropping our high temperature Wednesday and Thursday.

Through the rest of the work week, we’re staying dry! By the upcoming weekend, we’ll be tracking another disturbance headed for South Carolina. With it, we’ll have our next round of rain.

First Alert Forecast

Today: Skies full of sunshine. Breezy, with highs in the upper-70s.

Tonight: Mostly clear skies. Lows drop to around 50 degrees.

Wednesday: Lots of sunshine. Highs in the mid-70s.

Thursday: Sunshine continues. Highs in the low-70s.

Friday: Partly cloudy skies. Highs in the upper-70s.

Saturday: Peeks of sunshine through cloudy skies. Highs around 80 degrees.

Sunday: Scattered showers and a few thunderstorms. Chance of rain 40%. Highs near 80 degrees.

Feel more informed, prepared, and connected with WIS. For more free content like this, subscribe to our email newsletter, and download our apps. Have feedback that can help us improve? Click here.

Copyright 2025 WIS. All rights reserved.