CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – With two out in the seventh inning, North Carolina designated player and Kendra Lynch launched a three-run walk-off home run to lift the Tar Heels to a 5-3 comeback win over the Longwood softball team Tuesday afternoon at Anderson Softball Stadium.

The walk-off blast for Lynch, a 2016 All-ACC first-team selection, was her lone hit of the afternoon, as the Lancers were one out away from earning their second straight win over the Tar Heels dating back to last season's NCAA Harrisonburg Regional.

Lynch helped the Tar Heels complete a rally, as her squad trailed the Lancers 3-1 entering the bottom of the inning. Lynch drove the third pitch she saw from Sydney Gay to right center to lift the Tar Heels to their sixth win in their last eight games and fifth walk-off victory of the season.

"We played six good innings tonight and shot ourselves in the foot in the seventh inning," said Longwood head coach Kathy Riley. "They have a big, powerful lineup. Taylor Wike is a very good hitter for them and Kendra [Lynch] obviously is as well, so the fact that we were able to hold them in check until the last inning was something to build off."

With the win, the ACC's second-place Tar Heels (30-9, 9-3 ACC) are off to their best start in program history and received 20 top-25 votes in the latest USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. Meanwhile, Longwood (12-20, 1-5 Big South) drops its fourth straight game and sees its three-game winning streak against ACC competition come to an end.

Jordan Clark and Kaylynn Batten each recorded a two-hit game, as Clark went 2-for-3 performance at the plate, recording all three Longwood RBI in the game with her second home run of the season before adding an RBI single in the sixth inning.

Clark and Batten helped the Lancers outhit the Tar Heels, who came into the game ranked among the top-25 in the nation with a .326 batting average.

Taylor Wike had a three-hit day, leading the Tar Heels, as she scored two runs and added an RBI.

Gay (9-10) went the entire way in the circle, throwing 6.2 innings, allowing five runs on seven hits and a pair of walks in the loss. Gay also added four walks throughout on 115 pitches, 68 for strikes.

"Sydney was real good before the seventh inning," Riley said. "We could've gone to another of our pitchers, but I felt confident in Sydney because she was so good leading up to that inning."

Brittany Pickett (15-1) picked up the win, earning the start and throwing three scoreless innings before returning with no out in the seventh inning and tossing the final inning. Pickett finished the afternoon with 4.0 innings of work, giving up a hit and a walk.

Hannah Nommensen came into the game in the fourth inning and gave up a pair of runs on Clark's home run. Sydney Matzko was the third Tar Heel pitcher to throw in the game giving up one run on six hits in three innings.

Carolina took the lead in the home half of the third inning after Berlynne Delamora brought home Taylor Wike on an RBI double to center field on a play that was impacted by the sun, before Clark's two-run blast a half inning later.

Longwood's starting center fielder recorded her third RBI of the afternoon with a one-out single in the sixth inning to bring home Glenn Walters and extend the Longwood advantage to 3-1.

The Lancers once again had an opportunity to add to its lead in the seventh with two aboard and no out, but was unable to push across another run. That led to the bottom of the inning where Pickett drew a leadoff walk and Brittany West came on as a pinch runner and later came around to score on Wike's third hit of the day. After Berlynne Delamora drew a walk, Lynch lifted the third pitch she saw to right center field.

Longwood returns to Big South play in its home conference debut, welcoming Gardner-Webb to Lancer Field April 8-9. Saturday's doubleheader against the Runnin' Bulldogs is set for a 1 p.m., first pitch.

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