#6 NC State Baseball Hosts Georgia Tech in Clash of ACC’s Top Offenses

STARTING PITCHERS
Friday Game One: RHP Xzavion Curry (GT) vs. RHP Michael Bienlien (NCSU)
Friday Game Two: LHP Connor Tomas (GT) vs. TBA (NCSU)
Game Three: RHP Tristin English (GT) vs. LHP Brian Brown (NCSU)

RALEIGH, N.C. – The ACC’s top-two offenses will clash at Doak Field at Dail Park this weekend, as the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets make the trip to Raleigh to take on the sixth-ranked NC State Wolfpack.

NC State leads the ACC with a .326 team batting average and Georgia Tech is second in the conference with a .317 batting average as a team.

In an effort to avoid the likelihood of inclement weather, this weekend’s series has been changed to a doubleheader on Friday starting at 3 p.m. and game three of the series is to be determined (TBD). School officials will continue to monitor weather conditions closely and make a decision on the day/time of game three as soon as possible.

All three games will be broadcast live on the ACC Network Extra, accessible through Watch ESPN and the Watch ESPN App. Radio coverage is also available for game one of Friday’s doubleheader on WKNC 88.1 FM, but game two will NOT air live on the radio due to a programming conflict so there will be a FREE stream on GoPack.com.

Game three of the series is set to air on WKNC and on GoPack.com.

Tickets are still available and can be purchased by visiting GoPack.com/Pack9Tickets.

Last Time Out
In its last outing, NC State put the finishing touches on its first-ever sweep at Clemson with a 5-4 win in the series finale. After taking Friday and Saturday’s games in convincing fashion with a 4-0 and 6-1 victory, respectively, the Wolfpack found itself trailing for the first time in the series on Sunday.

The deficit did not phase the squad, as the Pack evened the score at 3-3 in the third inning and again at four apiece in the sixth inning. Will Wilson delivered the big hit for NC State with a go-ahead homer in the eighth and that proved to be the difference.

It was the Wolfpack’s first sweep against the Tigers since 1997.

The Series
Georgia Tech leads the all-time series with NC State, 73-56, but the Wolfpack won the last series between the teams in Atlanta.

Last Time Versus Georgia Tech
NC State and Georgia Tech last met during the 2016 ACC Championship held in Durham, N.C., when the Pack earned a 7-5 win. The Wolfpack hit three homers in that game, one apiece from Brock Deatherage, Brett Kinneman and Chance Shepard.

Will Gilbert earned the win on the mound with two innings of shutout relief and Johnny Piedmonte struck out the side in the ninth to pick up the save.

Last Series Versus Georgia Tech
NC State and Georgia Tech last played a three-game series during the 2016 season when the Pack won the first two games to clinch the series in Atlanta.

The Yellow Jackets last traveled to Raleigh in 2014 and NC State took that series with wins in games two and three.

Scouting Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech has had a strong season to this point in the year, as the Yellow Jackets are 12-9 overall with a 2-4 mark in ACC play. GT split a pair of midweek games defeating No. 6 Auburn on Tuesday 6-4, but the Jackets dropped a 6-2 decision against Mercer on Wednesday.

Head Coach Danny Hall earned his 1,000th win at Georgia Tech in the squad’s win against Auburn on Tuesday. Tech was swept at Clemson in its first ACC series, but bounced back with a series win against Virginia Tech last weekend.

The Yellow Jackets average 11.19 hits per game and are scoring 6.95 runs a game. Chase Murray leads the way for the group with a batting average of .440, which is the second best in the conference. GT’s lineup also features Preseason All-America Selection Joey Bart, who owns a .367 clip at the plate with eight home runs.

On the mound, the Jackets’ have struggled a little as the staff and own a 5.03 ERA. The weekend starters have been solid, as Friday starter Xzavion Curry is 4-0 on the year with a 3.54 ERA.

Wilson Garners ACC Player of the Week
After helping NC State baseball to a perfect 5-0 week, including the program’s first-ever sweep at Clemson, Will Wilson was named ACC Player of the Week on Monday.

The sophomore shortstop turned in a stellar week at the plate, as he compiled a .545 batting average with 12 hits, seven runs, five runs batted in (RBI), three doubles and two home runs.

He finished the weekend series against the Tigers with a .500 batting average, the highest for an individual on either team and tallied a series-high six hits.

Bienlien Dazzles in First Weekend Start
In his first weekend start of the season last Friday at Clemson, sophomore Michael Bienlien delivered a strong performance with five shutout innings to earn the win. He limited the Tigers’ potent offense, which entered the weekend second in the ACC with 26 home runs, to just five hits and all five were singles.

Bienlien retired the side in order in the third and fourth inning. His performance set the tone for the remainder of the game, as four Wolfpack pitchers combined to deal Clemson its first shutout loss of the season and first during the regular season since March 17, 2017.

Wilson Times Two
In last Sunday’s series finale at Clemson, Wilson tallied his first career multi-home run game. He hit a solo blast in the first inning to give NC State a 1-0 lead and smashed a go-ahead homer in the eighth to put the Wolfpack ahead 5-4, which proved to be the difference.

He is the third NC State player to record a multi-homer game, joining Evan Edwards and Brett Kinneman who have each accomplished the feat twice.

Consensus Top-13 in the National Rankings
Following NC State’s stellar weekend, the Wolfpack is now ranked among the top-13 of all six major polls. Perfect Game has the squad listed No. 6, Collegiate Baseball has the Wolfpack ranked eighth, while Baseball America and USA Today each have NC State at No. 10.

D1Baseball and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) each have NC State at No. 13.

Leap in NCAA RPI
The Wolfpack’s weekend sweep at Clemson helped the squad leap 66 spots in the NCAA RPI from No. 75 to No. 9. The Tigers were the top-ranked team in the RPI prior to the series.

Stellar Pack Bullpen
NC State’s bullpen has been stellar this season, as the group has compiled a 1.57 ERA. The Wolfpack’s relievers have inherited 48 runners and only 10 of those have scored.