OMAHA, Neb. (Interstat) — North Carolina’s three-run seventh inning, fueled by two West Virginia errors, broke a 2-2 tie and propelled the Tar Heels to a 5-2 victory over the Mountaineers on Sunday, June 14, 2026, at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska, in a playoff game.

The Tar Heels improved to 52-12-1, while the Mountaineers fell to 46-16.

West Virginia starter Maxx Yehl delivered a dominant performance through seven innings, allowing no hits while striking out seven. But he worked around two unearned runs and was lifted after the seventh. Yehl exited with the game tied, having allowed only two earned runs on no hits, but the damage came after his departure.

The game was scoreless until the top of the first, when West Virginia struck for two runs. Armani Guzman walked, and after a groundout and a strikeout, back-to-back run-scoring plays gave the Mountaineers a 2-0 lead. But the lead evaporated in the bottom of the first. North Carolina’s J. Schaffner singled, and consecutive walks and a hit batter loaded the bases. Erik Paulsen walked with the bases loaded to force in a run, and C. Nicholson grounded out to plate the tying run, making it 2-2.

Both pitching staffs settled in after that. Walker McDuffie entered for North Carolina in the fifth inning and threw 3 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, allowing three hits and striking out four. He retired the side in order in the sixth and worked out of a jam in the seventh. McDuffie’s outing was a rebound from a rough appearance on June 5 against Southern California, when he allowed four earned runs in one-third of an inning. On June 7, he had thrown a scoreless two-thirds of an inning against the same team.

West Virginia threatened in the top of the seventh. After two quick outs, T. Hall singled and stole second, but Guzman lined out to right field to end the inning.

The pivotal moment came in the bottom of the seventh. With Yehl still on the mound, C. Hynek reached on a fielding error by the third baseman. After a sacrifice bunt and a fielder’s choice advanced runners, second baseman Caden Glauber’s triple to right-center field scored two unearned runs, giving North Carolina a 4-2 lead. Owen Hull followed with a single up the middle, scoring Glauber and making it 5-2. All three runs were unearned.

West Virginia went quietly from there. McDuffie was relieved by Caden Glauber in the ninth, who struck out two of the three batters he faced, preserving the lead.

For the game, North Carolina collected eight hits, matching West Virginia’s total. Gavin Gallaher drove in two runs with his triple. Hull finished 2 for 4 with an RBI, and Carter French went 2 for 3 at the plate. For West Virginia, Guzman led the offense by going 2 for 3 with an RBI. Reese Bassinger pitched a scoreless eighth inning for the Mountaineers.

McDuffie earned the win for his effective relief work. Ryan Lynch started for North Carolina and threw 4 2/3 innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits with two strikeouts. West Virginia’s Yehl took a no-decision despite his strong start.

The game was tighter than expected. Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of West Virginia 8, North Carolina 7, while the ELO system gave the Tar Heels a 62.90 percent probability to win.