Latest North Carolina sports

PANTHERS-BEASON

Beason comes to teammate Newton's defense

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) Jon Beason may not play offensive tackle, but he's not afraid to protect his quarterback.

Beason, the Panthers' three-time Pro Bowl linebacker, fired back Friday at San Francisco 49ers quarterback Alex Smith via Twitter after comments he perceived were a slam on Carolina teammate Cam Newton.

Beason wrote, "Alex smith, don't hate on Cam (because) your stats would've gotten u cut if Peyton decided to come 2 San Fran. Truth b told. That's after a 13-3 yr."

Smith used Newton as an example Wednesday that big stats don't always equate to wins.

Smith said statistics are "totally overblown" and "guess what, you're like the Carolina Panthers and you're going no-huddle the entire second half. Yeah, Cam Newton threw for a lot of 300-yard games. That's great. You're not winning, though."

ACC-FLORIDA STATE-CLEMSON

Clemson claims walkoff win over FSU, 9-7

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) Jon McGibbon's three-run home run in the ninth inning lifted Clemson past Florida State 9-7 at the Atlantic Coast Conference baseball tournament.

McGibbon finished with four RBIs Friday for the fifth-seeded Tigers (33-25). They can claim a spot in the championship game if they beat eighth-seeded Georgia Tech on Saturday in their Pool A finale.

Clemson trailed 7-6 entering the ninth when Phil Pohl singled with one out and was replaced by pinch-runner Dominic Attanasio.

Pinch-hitter Mike Dunster then singled, and McGibbon followed by sending Robert Benincasa's 0-1 pitch over the fence in right-center.

Justin Gonzalez homered and drove in two runs for the top-seeded Seminoles (43-14). They fell to 0-2 in the round-robin tournament.

INDYCAR-INDY 500-ANDRETTI

Andretti finding better teamwork without Danica

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Andretti Autosport isn't lamenting the loss of Danica Patrick to NASCAR.

Team owner Michael Andretti and drivers Marco Andretti and Ryan Hunter-Reay say this year's improved results for their team are a direct correlation of better teamwork.

Michael Andretti believes his three-car team has found a way to mesh better than it has at any time since 2005.

Is that because Patrick's not around?

Nobody is saying that publicly. But Michael and Marco Andretti both believe there is more trust among teammates this season and they're sharing more information. Hunter-Reay acknowledges egos have not gotten in the way, either.

Patrick told reporters Thursday that she needed a fresh start after last season.

ACC-VIRGINIA-GEORGIA TECH

Georgia Tech routs UVa 17-5, stays perfect at ACC

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) Zane Evans homered and drove in six runs and Georgia Tech routed Virginia 17-5 to remain unbeaten in the Atlantic Coast Conference baseball tournament.

Mott Hyde and Jake Davies each homered and drove in three runs on Friday. The Yellow Jackets (34-24) scored six runs in the third inning, then added four runs in the fourth to build a 10-3 lead and claimed a mercy-rule-shortened victory.

Eighth-seeded Georgia Tech is in control of Pool A and will earn a spot in the championship round with a win Saturday against Clemson.

Brandon Downes had an RBI single and Keith Werman added a run-scoring sacrifice bunt for the fourth-seeded Cavaliers (37-17-1), who led 3-0 in the third before Georgia Tech erupted.

US OPEN-PINEHURST PREPARES

Pinehurst No. 2 preps for 2 US Opens in 2014

PINEHURST, N.C. (AP) Things are starting to take shape before the first doubleheader of U.S. opens.

In just over two years, Pinehurst's renowned No. 2 course will play host to the U.S. Open and U.S. Women's Open on consecutive weeks the first time the USGA has attempted such a feat.

Organizers said Friday that they'll keep an eye next month on the freshly renovated course to see how it behaves in typical June weather and make any necessary tweaks after that.

Ben Crenshaw led the $2.5 million facelift for the course, which had its rough removed and reverted to its original Donald Ross design. The course re-opened last spring, and Pinehurst president Don Padgett says it's finally mature enough that "we can kick the tires and see what we've got."