NCAA title eludes UNC baseball once again as Oklahoma rolls to the championship
It’s become an unfortunate tradition at this point.
North Carolina, under Mike Fox and now Scott Forbes, has become one of the powerhouses of college baseball — a perennial threat. Once again, however, that threat was neutralized.
No. 5 seed UNC fell to unseeded Oklahoma, 13-2, on Monday night in the Men’s College World Series finale. The game capped off the Sooners’ magical run, while the Tar Heels will return to Chapel Hill from Omaha empty-handed for the 13th time in program history.
They are now second all-time for the most MCWS appearances without a national title. Florida State leads with 21, and Clemson has 12. Additionally, Carolina has lost 23 straight games when trailing by five or more runs.
“We’re going to work our tails off to get back here, and the more you get to a place, hopefully you can knock that door down,” Forbes said. “We’ve just got to keep the main thing the main thing, and that’s the players, and helping them get better and leave here better people. You’ve got to feel like eventually that winning will take care of itself and, eventually, we’ll find a way to be on the other end.”
The Sooners (43-22), who lost six SEC series this season, completed their miraculous upset tour in Omaha. They knocked off ACC champion Georgia Tech — after trailing 7-3 in the sixth inning of its regional final — Big 12 champion Kansas, and SEC champion Georgia. OU also shut out Alabama to start the World Series.
UNC (54-14-1) got a taste of its own medicine, in delayed release format. Neither team advanced to Omaha in 2025, and Carolina ended OU’s season at the Chapel Hill regional. This time, it’s on the other side of the heartbreak.
“They took us on a ride that was unbelievable,” Forbes said of his team. “We came up a little bit short, but I would take that ride again every day of the year. While we’re sad, the sadness will go away. We also talk about joy. Joy doesn’t go away, and these guys have given me, our coaching staff, our fans, our administration, everybody, a ton of joy and a ton to be proud of.”
Several variables played into the Tar Heels’ loss, but pitching and a handful of coaching decisions loomed large.
Carolina’s pitching struggled early and deteriorated as the night progressed.
Freshman Jackson Rose earned his first start in six weeks and led off with a five-pitch swinging strikeout. Oklahoma made contact on three consecutive at bats, recording a pair of singles and fielder’s choice. With a pair of runners on, Rose escaped the jam by recording his second strikeout on a 3-2 count.
He was not as lucky in the second and third. Oklahoma scored its first three runs of the night off Rose, including one on a wild pitch. Rose’s throw snuck past catcher Colin Hynek and rolled to the backstop and allowed Dayton Tockey to scamper home.
The freshman picked up a pair of strikeouts in the top of the third but exited prior to the third out. He gave up six hits, including a double, and struck out five batters in 2 ⅔ innings of work.
Rose entered the winner-take-all title game with a 2.15 ERA and held opponents scoreless in his previous 12 innings pitched.
“I’d do it again,” Forbes said of the decision to start Rose. “I thought he was one of our hottest pitchers. I thought he competed his tail off. I mean, you’re talking about a true freshman. I know they threw a true freshman as well. But I’m proud of him. Without Jackson Rose, we wouldn’t have got this far.”
UNC replaced Rose with experienced reliever Walker McDuffie. The sophomore, however, had an even shorter outing. McDuffie faced five batters and threw 25 total pitches before getting pulled. The right-hander recorded just two outs and gave up three runs, three walks and only struck out one batter.
It felt like Forbes was out of options when he walked to the mound, the Tar Heels facing a 3-0 deficit and McDuffie down in a 2-0 count. UNC needed a lot more from its typically-reliable guy out of the bullpen.
North Carolina then turned to star freshman Caden Glauber in a seemingly last-ditch attempt to stabilize things and give its offense a chance to respond.
Unfortunately, the ACC freshman of the year couldn’t get it done. In fact, he gave up back-to-back walks — one with the bases loaded — and a two-RBI single to extend the deficit. Glauber’s performance followed four appearances in the past 10 days, including five innings of work on Sunday. Though his team was on its way to a crucial 6-2 win in Game 2, Forbes chose to use Glauber from the fifth inning on as the Tar Heels forced Monday night’s winner-take-all finale.
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Oklahoma continued to pour it on as the Tar Heels went to Matthew Matthijs, Folger Boaz, Cameron Padgett, Tom Chmielewski and Kyle Percival. Every pitcher but Percival gave up at least one run.
Forbes said the coaching staff discussed bringing in Jason DeCaro with a lead but was thinking long-term about his career.
UNC will also be left questioning its second-inning base running decision. The Tar Heels hit two singles and appeared comfortable against Oklahoma starting pitcher Nick Wesloski.
When Rom Kellis recorded the third hit of the inning, Forbes waved home Erik Paulsen — far from the speediest player — from second base. Instead of UNC loading the bases with two down, Oklahoma tagged Carter French out at third, long before Paulsen crossed home plate. The decision cost Carolina its third out and sucked the momentum out of UNC’s offense.
“That wasn’t the reason we lost the game,” Forbes said of the play. “Obviously, it hurt our momentum a little bit. But baseball, it’s the best game there is. You look at this box score, they out hit us; they beat us pretty good. There’s a lot more within that box score than just the hits. But that was a tough play, and it’s what it is. We just had to deal with it.”
Second baseman Gavin Gallaher drove in shortstop Jake Schaffner in the fourth to end the shutout. Pinch hitter Jadyn Nunez scored on a throwing error in the seventh to add another. There wasn’t enough juice in the bats or precision from pitchers for Carolina to bring home the trophy.
“This is probably the most hurt I’ve ever felt in my life and not just because we’re one game away from doing something that no UNC baseball team has ever done,” Gallaher said, “but more so just because this is the end of the season.”
UNC’s history at the College World Series
North Carolina made its 13th trip to the Men’s College World Series this summer, the second under Forbes. It previously advanced to the final eight in 2024, but it did not make the championship final.
North Carolina made back-to-back championship appearances in 2006 and 2007, losing to Oregon State both times. Forbes was the pitching coach at the time.
In 2006, the Tar Heels won the first game and lost the next two. They fell to the Beavers, 3-2, in the deciding game.
A year later, Oregon State swept Carolina in two games to win the 2007 title. The Beavers out-scored the Heels, 20-7, in the title series.
This story was originally published June 22, 2026 at 7:56 PM with the headline "NCAA title eludes UNC baseball once again as Oklahoma rolls to the championship."
