CLEMSON, S.C. (Interstat) — In a marathon Atlantic Coast Conference clash defined by missed opportunities and stellar relief pitching, North Carolina outlasted Clemson 6-4 in 14 innings Saturday at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

The game, which began in the afternoon and ended under the lights, saw the Tar Heels strand 15 baserunners and the Tigers leave 14 on before North Carolina finally broke through with two unearned runs in the decisive 14th.

The most important part of the game was the top of the 14th inning, where North Carolina capitalized on critical Clemson mistakes. Alex Nunez led off with a single and was sacrificed to second by Vance Winslow. After a walk to Jackson Hull, Clemson right fielder Cam Dalley dropped a fly ball off the bat of Kaleb Hynek, loading the bases with no outs.

Clemson brought in reliever Brendon Bennett, but on a safety squeeze bunt by Colby Howe, Bennett’s throwing error to first allowed two runs to score and Hull to come all the way home from second. The sequence gave the Tar Heels a 6-4 lead, the final margin after 4 hours and 37 minutes of play.

The victory improved North Carolina to 29-6-1 overall, while Clemson fell to 23-13.

North Carolina built an early lead with a run in the second on Hynek’s sacrifice fly and another in the fourth on Hull’s RBI single. Clemson chipped away, getting an RBI single from Blake Moore in the second and a solo home run from Jacob Jarrell in the fourth. The Tigers tied the game at 4-4 in the seventh when Andrew Lichtenberge drew a bases-loaded walk, but they left the go-ahead run at third.

Both bullpens then took over. For North Carolina, the combination of Walker McDuffie, Ryan Lynch, and Caden Glauber was dominant. From the sixth inning through the 14th, the trio combined for nine innings of scoreless, two-hit relief. Glauber, named the top star, earned the win with six perfect innings of relief, striking out six. He entered with two on and one out in the ninth and retired all 18 batters he faced.

Clemson’s relief corps was nearly as effective. Ariston Veasey, Dylan Harrison, and Michael Sharman kept the Tar Heels off the board from the ninth through the 13th. Sharman started and went five innings, allowing two runs on five hits with six strikeouts.

The Tar Heels had taken a 5-4 lead in the top of the ninth on an RBI fielder’s choice by Eric Paulsen, but could not add more despite loading the bases. They finished with 13 hits but went 4 for 22 with runners in scoring position. Clemson collected 11 hits, with Jarrell going 2 for 5 with the homer.

The loss wasted a gritty effort from the Tigers, who fought back from deficits of 3-0 and 4-3. They put the potential winning run in scoring position in the ninth and 10th innings but could not deliver the key hit against Glauber.

The teams conclude their three-game series Sunday afternoon.