UPDATE: After a 5-9 loss to Florida State Tuesday, the Tar Heels' season has ended. The team finished with a 48-16 record winning just one game in the CWS. Shea Sprague, who pitched a total of 78.1 innings this season, did not make it to the mound in yesterday's game. Next season, he will return to Chapel Hill as a senior, with the goal of making it back to Omaha.

University of North Carolina pitcher Shea Sprague, a BC High alumnus, made his debut appearance at the College World Series last Friday watching the team’s game against Virginia, then took the mound on Sunday for University of North Carolina in a loss against Tennessee at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska.

Despite losing 6-1 to the Vols, the left-handed hurler remained in good spirits. “It went all right and I was throwing pretty well. I got off to a good start but then I made a bad pitch and they hit a three-run home run off me,” Sprague told The Reporter. “But, “ he noted, “they’re the best offense in the country and they're the No. 1 overall seed. It was a good challenge even though we didn’t get the result we wanted.”

In four innings Sprague, a junior, struck out six while allowing four runs, three hits, and two walks. While he is not expected to play in today's game (June 18) against Florida State, he said he will be ready to go Wednesday against Tennessee if North Carolina defeats the Florida squad.

At each game, Sprague has had the support of family and friends, many of whom have called Dorchester home at one point or another. “Both my parents are from Dorchester,” he explained. “My mom grew up on Buttonwood Street and my dad grew up in Uphams Corner.”

Shea has fond childhood memories of the neighborhood. “Just going to my grandparents’ house in Savin Hill was a great time. I went to daycare in Braintree and some days after I would just spend up there and go to the park and walk around with my grandmother. She's awesome.”

He added, “My uncle always brought me to BC High basketball games, so I grew up going to a lot of those games and I always wanted to go there.”

Sprague made it to BC High as he hoped but it wasn’t basketball that brought him beyond there. “I always loved basketball and I thought I was pretty good at it and then when I went to BC High, I was on the varsity team,” he said. “But I didn’t get too much playing time until senior year. But I played varsity baseball and kind of excelled at it.”

He then took his talents to Elon University and then to UNC. Despite being far away from his high school field at Monan Park, Sprague has felt the support of his former BC High coaches and teammates throughout this College World Series run. “I was texting Coach Healey because they just won the state championship in baseball,” Sprague said. He also joked about his teammates sending him videos of himself on ESPN, sometimes messing with him and other times congratulating him.

As he is being supported by family, friends, and former teammates, Sprague is making sure to do just the same for his current teammates by “keeping them loose and joking around with them. Whatever they need to get it done.”

The game is being broadcast on the ESPN network.