UNC Baseball can't overcome offensive struggles in loss to Tennessee

Well, the magic simply wasn't there for the UNC baseball program on Sunday evening.

The Diamond Heels couldn't muster up anything offensive en route to a loss to No. 1 overall seeded Tennessee in the College World Series' winner's bracket.

Early on, it was a pitchers duel between Shea Sprague and Drew Bean, as the game was scoreless heading into the first inning. Sprague had to work a bit harder than Bean, who needed just over 20 pitches to record 10 outs, as the Tar Heels were very aggressive to the point where it wasn't paying off.

Sprague battled, but the Volunteers finally got to him in the bottom half of the fourth inning. Kavares Tears blasted a three-run homer over the right field fence, a blast that made the score seem much more lobsided than it actually was. Tennessee added another run in the bottom half of the fifth inning on a Reese Chapman solo homer, as that would be all for the Tar Heels' left-hander.

North Carolina did respond in the top half of the sixth inning, as Vance Honeycutt blasted a solo home run of his own. Unfortunately, that's all the Tar Heels would get, as they couldn't build up momentum, especially with runners on base.

Whether it was Colby Wilkerson's strikeout with runners on first and second and two outs in the fifth or Anthony Donofrio getting picked off with runners at the corners in the sixth, the Tar Heels had opportunities but simply couldn't capitalize.

The offensive struggles aren't new, as the last three games the Diamond Heels have struggled to put runs on the board. North Carolina has scored just six runs over the last three games, as Vance Honeycutt is responsible for four of those six runs.

If the Tar Heels hope to extend their season, the offense needs to wake up fast.

Now, the UNC baseball program is once again in do or die mode, as they'll take on Florida State in an elimination game on Tuesday afternoon. The winner will advance to the bracket finals to take on Tennessee, while the loser's run in Omaha will come to a close.

The goal now is to live another day and find away to play on Wednesday.