DURHAM – No. 3 North Carolina rallied to tie the game with a three-run sixth inning, but a late Duke charge provided a 7-3 Friday night win for the No. 9 Blue Devils at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park in the first game of the weekend series.
Duke struck first in the bottom of the second inning against North Carolina starter Cooper Criswell. With one out and the bases empty, Griffin Conine took a pitch well over the wall in center field, his 11th of the season to make it 1-0 Duke early.
The game settled down over the next couple of innings, but the Blue Devils plated another run on a close play at the plate in the bottom of the fifth.