Gavin Gallaher blasts walk-off grand slam to lift UNC to victory vs. LIU
Things were looking awfully bleak for the North Carolina Tar Heels in the bottom of the ninth inning against LIU on Friday night. But they dug deep, and, in the end, slugger Gavin Gallaher delivered the blast of a lifetime, a walk-off grand slam to lift the ‘Heels to a 11-8 win in Chapel Hill.
With UNC down 8-7 and the bases juiced, Gallaher lifted the Tar Heels to victory in front of the home crowd, sending one deep into the night sky.
It was the first walk-off grand slam for the North Carolina baseball program since 2010. The stud freshman finished 3-for-4 at the plate with two homers (one was a solo shot) and six RBIs in his NCAA Tournament debut.
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UNC put six runs on the board in the bottom of the ninth to pull off the stunning come-from-behind victory. They trailed 8-5 to start the ninth inning and finished it with a heart-stopping 11-8 win. Once the game wrapped up, Gallaher spoke with the ESPN broadcast crew on the field.
Gavin Gallaher on his late-game heroics on Friday night
What was he thinking walking up to bat before his walk-off blast? “Well, I mean, we’ve been in this situation before. We had it against Wake Forest last weekend. I mean, I was in the same situation last weekend against Wake Forest and I’ve been thinking about that at bat ever since. And so I knew that going up to the plate right there, I was prepared to get the job done this time,” Gallaher calmly explained.
When was the last time he had a walk-off home run? “I don’t even know man. It’s been a while,” the UNC slugger said.
What’s been going so well for him right now with his game? “Right now, it was just I just felt like I saw the ball really well today. Did a good job of keeping my head still. Been working on that for a while. Just trying to slow myself down.”
North Carolina was one strike away from winning in the top of the ninth inning. But LIU rallied with some late game heroics of their own. They belted a three-run home run to take an 8-5 lead over the Tar Heels in the top of the ninth. Before UNC put together their unforgettable rally in the bottom of the ninth. What was it like dealing with that wide range of emotions?
“You know, this is such a great group of guys. This is such a great group of guys. We know that anybody on this team can get the job done and when you trust the guy behind you, it’s real easy to go up there and just play loose,” Gallaher said.
The Tar Heels must now turn the page and prepare for the LSU Tigers on Saturday evening. How does Gallaher plan on channeling the emotion from Friday night and take it into tomorrow night’s game? “I’m gonna enjoy this. I’m gonna take a shower and then, I’m gonna get focused for tomorrow. And it’s just gonna be another game,” the UNC star explained.