OMAHA, Neb. (Interstat) — The North Carolina Tar Heels and Oklahoma Sooners meet Sunday evening at Charles Schwab Field in a pivotal playoff game, with the forecast calling for a 75-degree day with rain.

North Carolina (53-13-1) enters as the higher-seeded team but lost the most recent head-to-head matchup, falling 9-3 to Oklahoma on Saturday. The Tar Heels will look to even the series behind a deep lineup that has powered one of the best records in the nation.

Oklahoma (42-22) carries momentum from that victory, which featured a standout performance from catcher Deiten Lachance. Lachance went 3 for 5 with two home runs and three RBIs in Saturday’s win, continuing a torrid stretch. Over his past four games, he has collected multiple hits in three contests, including a 2-for-5 showing with a home run and two RBIs against Alabama on June 13.

The Sooners’ pitching staff backed Lachance on Saturday, as Cord Rager tossed 5.0 innings, allowing three earned runs and no hits while striking out five.

For North Carolina, attention turns to right-handed pitcher Walker McDuffie, who appeared in Saturday’s loss, allowing one earned run on four hits over 2.1 innings with two strikeouts. McDuffie has been volatile recently; he threw 3.2 scoreless innings against West Virginia on June 14 but surrendered four earned runs in just 0.1 innings against Southern California on June 5. His ability to provide length and stability will be critical against an Oklahoma offense that has scored at least nine runs in four of its past five games.

The two teams are familiar foes in this setting. Sunday’s game is the second of a three-game set at the neutral-site ballpark, with the winner gaining a significant advantage in the playoff series. Interstat’s game simulator projects an 8-7 victory for North Carolina, forecasting a high-scoring, tense affair.

Both teams have shown offensive firepower. Oklahoma has scored 11 or more runs three times in its past five games. North Carolina has averaged more than seven runs per game over its past 10 contests.

The winner of Sunday’s game will face the loser in a decisive matchup Monday at the same venue.