Gardner-Webb edged North Carolina with a chaotic finish that had everything from ejections to a balk call that flipped the game. In the bottom of the seventh, Gardner-Webb’s pitcher struck out a Tar Heels batter to end the inning and immediately started jawing. The batter responded with a dramatic bat flip and helmet toss. Things escalated when the pitcher shoved his own catcher twice as he tried to step in, and then got tangled with the batter. Both coaches got into it too, arguing about who should be claiming responsibility for the pitcher.
North Carolina responded on the field. In the bottom of the eighth, they started with a single and then caught a break when a routine fly ball dropped between the left fielder, center fielder, and shortstop. That put runners on second and third with no outs. After a strikeout and an intentional walk, the Gardner-Webb pitcher got a comebacker but blew the throw home. The game tied at 4-4. Then came the game-changing balk. On the next batter, the umpire ruled the pitcher broke his motion illegally, sending in the go-ahead run. It was a close call and still debatable, with multiple wind-ups shown for comparison. Gardner-Webb’s pitcher finished the inning strong with back-to-back outs, but the damage was done.
The mix of trash talk, poor defense, and controversial umpiring turned a low-scoring game into a mess. North Carolina grabbed the lead without a clean hit after the blooper and miscue. Even the earlier scuffle between pitcher and catcher turned full circle by the end, with both players cooling off. The loss might sting for Gardner-Webb, but they helped create one of the more dramatic finishes of the season.