After a 9-5 win over No. 5 North Carolina (45-13), Game 1 of the Chapel Hill Regional Final gave Oklahoma (38-22) hope that it could steal a regional title and reach its first Super Regional since the magical 2022 season.
The Tar Heels wouldn’t be denied, though. They jumped out to a 7-2 lead in the first three innings and went on to end the Sooners’ season with a 14-4 decision.
Skip Johnson went deep into the bullpen to try and stymie UNC’s attack, and got a promising outing from Dylan Tate. The right-hander threw 4.0 innings, allowing four hits, one earned run, and striking out five. But it wasn’t enough. Oklahoma’s bullpen lacked the depth to shut down the Tar Heels twice in 24 hours. After holding UNC to seven hits on Sunday, the Sooners surrendered 17 hits and 14 runs in Monday’s finale.
Offensively, Oklahoma cooled off with just six hits and 13 strikeouts on the afternoon. Drew Dickerson and Jason Walk provided the lone sparks—Dickerson’s two-run homer in the second gave the Sooners early life, and Walk’s solo shot in the seventh briefly cut the deficit to five.
Each time, though, UNC had an answer. The Tar Heels poured in four runs in the third and three more in the eighth to keep momentum firmly in Chapel Hill.
The knockout blow came from Gavin Gallaher, who hit home runs in the eighth and ninth—the second bomb scoring three runs to give the Tar Heels their final tally of 14. It capped a monster regional from the Tar Heels’ third baseman, who finished 13-for-18 with three homers, a triple, three doubles, and 10 RBIs.
North Carolina will host Arizona in the Super Regionals next weekend, while Oklahoma heads back to Norman to begin the offseason after finishing its inaugural SEC campaign at 38-22.
Not an OUInsider.com premium member? Sign up today to get loads of inside information on Oklahoma football, softball, basketball, and recruiting, all for just a few dollars a month. Click HERE to get started!
Follow us on Twitter @OUInsider and on Instagram @ouinsiderofficial!
Subscribe on YouTube by clicking here for daily video content on all things Oklahoma!
#Sooners #season #Chapel #Hill #Regional #final