When you get to this stage in the postseason, every single mistake will likely come back to haunt you, especially when your opponent has been the hottest team in the country over the last few weeks.
North Carolina trailed early and couldn't muster a comeback, as the Diamond Heels will now face a must-win game on Sunday afternoon to keep their season alive.
Oklahoma dominates Game 1 of the College World Series Championship
Other than the bottom half of the first inning, the game was all Sooners throughout.
Oklahoma wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, as Deiten Lachance took Jason DeCaro deep in the top half of the first inning. The Tar Heels answered right back, collecting four consecutive hits to start the bottom half of the first inning, and finished the frame holding a 3-2 lead.
From there, North Carolina really didn't have a chance.
Lachance took DeCaro deep again in the third and the floodgates started to open in the fourth, as the 7-3 lead the Sooners built started to feel like a much bigger lead. Considering UNC had four hits in the first inning, you would've thought the offense would've kept producing, but credit to Oklahoma's pitching staff for holding them to just three more hits the rest of the game.
Cord Rager, Oklahoma's freshman starting pitcher, settled down nicely while DeCaro, the junior ace for the Tar Heels, couldn't.
It unfortunately wasn't DeCaro's day, as everytime he got close to settling in Oklahoma made sure to derail those plans. He allowed a season-high seven runs in just 3.2 innings of work, as it definitely wasn't the start that he or the Diamond Heels anticipated he would have in potentially his final start as a Tar Heel.
Now don't get it twisted, it definitely does not all fall on DeCaro. In fact, UNC did not play like they have all season long. Typically, this group is the one who is making things happen and forcing opponents into mistakes. That was the complete opposite on Saturday afternoon, as Oklahoma was the aggressor while North Carolina was the team that was having trouble stopping it.
Of course, the loss is disappointing, but the Tar Heels have been in this position before. Now, they have their backs against the wall and need to find a way to even the series on Sunday afternoon, and will turn to Ryan Lynch in hopes that he could neutralize this red-hot Oklahoma offense a bit.
The good news is that the bullpen is mostly intact, as Caden Glauber will be available out of the pen if the Tar Heels are able to muster together a lead later on in the ball game.
Not all hope is lost, as crazier things have happened in the world of sports. Sure, the loss is a deflating one, considering UNC was fully overmatched, but the good news is that tomorrow is a brand new day and anything can happen.
For Scott Forbes and the UNC baseball program, the hope is that they can extend their season at least another day to force a winner-take-all game on Monday night in Omaha.
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