NC State Baseball
No. 5 NC State Rallies Late to Clinch Series Against William & Mary
RALEIGH, N.C. – The fifth-ranked NC State baseball team rallied late with eight unanswered runs, highlighted by six runs in the eighth inning to earn an 8-4 win against William & Mary Saturday night at Doak Field at Dail Park to clinch the series.
The Wolfpack has now won 10 of its 11 weekend series this season and 12 consecutive non-conference weekend series dating back to 2011. For the second consecutive game, the NC State pitching staff did not issue a walk and three pitchers combined to strike out 11 batters.
NC State moves to 33-12 on the year and William & Mary falls to 15-31. Sophomore Kent Klyman earns the win for the Pack and is now 4-2, while Jacob Haney took the loss for the Tribe and is 1-7.
Quick Hits
– William & Mary struck first with a run in the top of the third after an RBI double and the Tribe extended the advantage to 4-0 with three solo homers in the sixth.
– From there, it was all NC State as the squad scored eight unanswered runs to rally for the win.
– Senior Brock Deatherage ignited the Wolfpack offense with a two-run homer in the seventh to cut the deficit to 4-2 after his 10th home run of the year.
– NCSU pushed across six runs on three hits and capitalized on an error by William & Mary in the eighth inning.
– Will Wilson reached on a fielder’s choice and an errant throw allowed Terrell Tatum and Josh McLain to score to knot the tally at four apiece.
– Patrick Bailey just missed a three-run go-ahead homer, as a hard-hit ball down the right field line hooked foul but he doubled down the left field line on the next pitch to drive in Wilson to give NC State a 5-4 lead.
– A wild pitch scored Edwards from third base and Deatherage left the yard for the second time in the game with a two-run blast over the left field wall to put NC State ahead, 8-4.
– It was the second multi-homer outing in the last four games for the Burlington, N.C., native.
Inside the Box Score
– Deatherage led the Wolfpack at the plate with a 2-for-4 performance, highlighted by four RBI and two runs scored.
– Bailey, Brett Kinneman, McLain and Tatum each had one hit for NC State.
– McLain’s hit extended his reached base safely streak to a team-leading 14 games.
– The Pack plated six runs in the eighth inning to record its 23rd big inning of the season with four or more runs in the frame.
On the Mound
– Senior Brian Brown started on the mound for NC State and pitched 5.2 innings with seven strikeouts, yielding four runs.
– Nolan Clenney pitched a 1.2 scoreless innings and Klyman closed it out with a 1.2, fanning three batters.
On Deck
The Wolfpack and Tribe wrap-up the series Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.
NC State just defeated #11 UNC 9-8 via a walk-off Home Run from Junior Shortstop Brandon Butterworth in the Bottom of the 9th inning.
The Wolfpack have 6 walk-off wins in 2024, which leads the nation.
In a game in which there was a combined 8 Home Runs between both teams, it was the last one that mattered most.
UNC kicked things off in the Top of the 1st inning with a Home Run from Casey Cook. The Wolfpack would respond in the Bottom of the 1st with a 2-RBI Single from Junior Catcher Jacob Cozart.
Two-out damage from ‘Zart 💥 pic.twitter.com/cSn7vKoZBh
— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) April 18, 2024
Cook would hit another Home Run in the Top of the 3rd, and Vance Honeycutt would also hit a 2-Run Home Run, giving the Tar Heels a 4-2 lead.
Once again, the Wolfpack responded in the bottom frame. Senior Third Baseman Alec Makarewicz hit his 15th Home Run of the season.
Ideal start to the home half of the third 💣#Pack9 | @Alec_mak99 pic.twitter.com/BrLSstM3D2
— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) April 19, 2024
Junior Outfielder Chase Nixon had an RBI Single, and his Freshman brother Luke (2B) brought in the third run of the inning on a fielders choice, giving the Wolfpack a 5-4 lead.
Tie game! C-Nix delivers 😤 pic.twitter.com/aafYlvOhUh
— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) April 19, 2024
The 4th inning was the only inning of the contest in which no runs were scored.
UNC’s Park Harber tied the game in the Top of the 5th with a solo shot.
Cozart was the Wolfpack’s MVP, giving his team a 3-run cushion in the bottom of the 6th inning with a 3-run Home Run. He had 5 RBI’s this evening.
TO THE MOON 📈🚀 pic.twitter.com/8g8pPUFJAN
— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) April 19, 2024
The cushion wasn’t enough, with the Tar Heels scoring 3 runs over the next two innings. Alberto Osuna hit a solo shot, Alex Madera had an RBI Single, and Harber hit a sac fly.
With the game tied in the bottom of the 9th, with one out, Brandon Butterworth crushed the ball over the left field fence, snapping a 5-game losing streak against UNC.
CALLED. GAME.#Pack9 | @SlippinOnButter pic.twitter.com/6B15Jxkndr
— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) April 19, 2024
Wolfpack Starter Sam Highfill lasted 3.1 innings, giving up 4 runs, while striking out 4. His ERA on the year is 5.16.
It was Sophomore Shane Van Dam that brought stability to the mound, pitching 3.2 innings, giving up 2 earned runs, while striking out 5. On the year, Van Dam’s ERA is 2.90.
Sophomore Derrick Smith came in to close things out, and gave up 1 run on 1 hit in 2 innings, striking out 2. Smith picked up the Win, and is 3-0 on the year.
Game 2 of the series is tomorrow night at 6pm at Doak Field. The Wolfpack will look to secure their first series victory over their rival since 2021, and their first one at home since 2016.
NC State and #11 UNC will kickoff a 3-game series in Raleigh tonight, but before the two rivals hit the diamond, here’s a Bracketology report for the Wolfpack before the first pitch.
D1Baseball currently projects that NC State will be the #2 seed in Greenville Region, hosted by #9 seed East Carolina. Back on April 2nd, the Wolfpack lost 4-12 to the Pirates at the Doak.
Baseball America projects NC State will be a #2 seed in the Knoxville Region, hosted by #6 seed Tennessee.
The Wolfpack are currently 20-14 overall, ranking 33rd in the RPI.