DURHAM, N.C. (Interstat) — Jason DeCaro carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning and North Carolina’s offense scratched out enough runs to defeat Duke 3-1 on Thursday night, extending the Tar Heels’ dominance in the Atlantic Coast Conference matchup.

DeCaro, a right-hander, struck out seven and walked one over 7.2 innings, allowing no hits and no earned runs. He left after 87 pitches with a 3-0 lead and one out in the eighth. The Tar Heels improved to 35-7-1 overall; the Blue Devils fell to 22-22.

North Carolina scored first in the third inning. Jake Schaffner led off with a single, stole second, then third, and came home on Owen Hull’s single up the middle. Hull later stole second but was left stranded. The Tar Heels added a run in the sixth after Duke starter Aidan Weaver departed. Weaver struck out 11 over five innings, allowing three hits and one earned run.

With Weaver out, reliever Marcello Mastroianni entered. North Carolina’s Luke Nicholson led off the sixth with a hit-by-pitch, moved to second on a flyout and scored on Jadyn Nunez’s single to center, making it 2-0. The Tar Heels tacked on an insurance run in the ninth. After Schaffner struck out, Perry Gallaher singled and Hull doubled to left-center, driving in Gallaher from first.

Duke’s only run came in the bottom of the eighth, aided by a pair of North Carolina mistakes. Michael DiMartini singled with two outs, then stole second. Tyler Albright singled, moving DiMartini to third. Albright then stole second, and during the play, DiMartini stole third and scored when catcher Luke Winslow’s throw sailed into left field, allowing Albright to advance to third. The run was unearned.

North Carolina closer Walker McDuffie replaced DeCaro after the error and struck out Duke’s Ben Quagliano to end the inning. McDuffie worked 1.1 perfect innings with three strikeouts to earn the save.

Owen Hull finished 2-for-4 with two runs batted in and a stolen base. Schaffner walked once, singled and stole three bases. Nunez was 1-for-3 with an RBI. For Duke, DiMartini was 1-for-3, and Albright was 1-for-3 with a stolen base.

Duke used five pitchers. After Weaver’s five-inning start, Mastroianni allowed one run on one hit over two innings with two strikeouts. Bennett LaPalm worked two innings, yielding two hits and one earned run while striking out three.

The series continues Friday at Duke’s Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The Tar Heels and Blue Devils play again Saturday, then conclude the three-game set Sunday at North Carolina.

Interstat’s game simulator projected an 8-1 final score for North Carolina, and its ELO system gave the Tar Heels a 67.00 percent probability of winning.