Saturday's S.C. college baseball roundup, March 9

II'm still experimenting with roundups. I'm going to try to put some stuff on the scorelist post and make the roundup shorter.

Clemson needed two ninth-inning runs - the second on a game-ending balk - to take its ACC opener against No. 3 North Carolina, 3-2,  on Saturday in the first game of a doubleheader at Doug Kingsmore Stadium. The 20th-ranked Tigers avoided any drama in the nightcap and rolled to a 17-3 victory.

The Tigers were trailing, 2-1, in the ninth when Michael Green singled and took second on a one-out walk by pinch-hitter Chad Fairey. Kier Meredith singled to score Green and both runners advanced on a Tar Heels error.  UNC pitcher Joey Lancellotti then balked, allowing pinch-runner Elijah Henderson to score the winning run.

In Game 2, the Tigers (11-3) fell behind 1-0 in the first, but scored 2, 4, 2, 3 and 5 runs over first five innings. Grayson Byrd had four hits and drove in five runs for Clemson, which had 20 hits as it clinched a series win. Bryar Hawkins had a home run among his four hits. Sam Hall also had four hits and had a SportsCenter Top 10-type catch in left field.

Clemson goes for a sweep at 1 p.m. Sunday.

Elsewhere
* Reid Morgan struck out 10 in 8  2/3 innings, but South Carolina needed back-to-back ninth-inning homers from Luke Berryhill and Jacob Olson to beat Valpariso, 3-2, in Game 2 and complete a doubleheader sweep. It was the third walk-off win for Carolina (12-3) this season. The Gamecocks won the opener, 9-2, to finish a game suspended by rain on Friday night.

Morgan gave up just seven hits, but four came in the sixth inning when Valparaiso scored twice to take a 2-1 lead.

Valparaiso starter Jon Tieman went the first eight innings, allowing six hits and struck out five. Berryhill greeted Crusaders reliever Montana Quigley with a first-pitch homer to center field and Olson drove an 0-1 pitch into tunnel beyond the left-field fence. to end the game.

Andrew Eyster had two hits in each game, including a double and a triple in the nightcap. Olson also had two hits.

Sunday's series finale has been pushed to a noon start because of weather concerns.

* UGAsports.com reports Presbyterian catcher Jimmy McDonald will spend Saturday night in a hospital and undergo an MRI on Sunday after being injured in a collision at home plate in the first game of the doubleheader at Georgia. McDonald was diving to try to tag a Georgia runner who scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch to cap a four-run eighth inning. Anthony Dasher of UGAsports.com reports PC coach Elton Pollock told him he had received "positive news" (Dasher's term), but there were no details yet.