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NC State Baseball

Four NC State Players Selected on Day Two of MLB Draft

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6 years ago

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RALEIGH, N.C. – NC State had four players selected on day two of the Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft, which is the first time in program history that more than three players have been chosen among the top-10 rounds.

Junior Brett Kinneman along with seniors Brian Brown, Josh McLain and Brock Deatherage were all selected.

Kinneman was the first Wolfpack player to hear his name called, as he was selected by his home state Pittsburgh Pirates in the seventh round with the 204th pick. The ACC Pitcher of the Year, Brown was next with the 280th pick in the ninth round to the Boston Red Sox.

McLain and Deatherage were drafted with consecutive selections, as the Los Angeles Dodgers chose McLain with the 284th pick in the ninth round and Deatherage was the first pick in the 10thround with the 285th pick by the Detroit Tigers.

Brown, McLain and Deatherage were all selected within six picks.

The Wolfpack’s four selections in the top-10 rounds of the MLB Draft is a first four for the program, eclipsing the previous mark of three achieved on numerous occasions and is tied for the second most among ACC programs.

Under NC State head coach Elliott Avent more than 100 players have been selected in the MLB Draft, as the four players in this year’s event bring the total to 104.

Brett Kinneman | York, Pa. | OF
Third Team Collegiate Baseball & College Sports Madness All-American, First Team All-ACC

Kinneman’s standout junior season earned First Team All-ACC honors and Third Team All-America honors, as he hit 17 home runs to rank fourth in the conference and among the top 25 nationally. He tallied 61 runs batted in (RBI) on the year to tie for third in the ACC and rank among the nation’s best. His 61 RBIs are the most for an NC State player since 2012 when Ryan Matthews had 62. The Wolfpack’s left fielder tied for the team-high with 15 multi-RBI games, highlighted by three games with five or more RBIs. Kinneman compiled a .274 batting average and led the Pack in runs with 52 and 46 walks. He was named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List, D1 Baseball and Perfect Game Midseason All-American, National and ACC Player of the Week twice and NCBWA National Player of the Month for February.

Brian Brown | Glenmoore, Pa. | P
Second Team All-American, ACC Pitcher of the Year, First Team All-ACC

Brown turned in a stellar senior season to become just the second player in NC State baseball history to garner the ACC Pitcher of the Year award. He recorded a 7-2 record complemented by a 2.74 earned run average (ERA), which ranks among the top 10 ACC pitchers. Brown threw two complete games, headlined by closing out last Saturday’s win against Army in the rain. He started 16 games on the mound this season and 61 for his career to break the program record for career starts. Additionally, he finished his Wolfpack tenure with 25 wins to tie for the fifth most in the NC State record books along with Carlos Rodon. Brown went at least five innings in 15 of his 16 starts and NC State has won 13 of the 16 games he started. He is one of 25 semifinalists for the Golden Spikes Award.

Josh McLain | Hiddenite, N.C. | OF
First Team All-ACC

McLain turned in a stellar senior season to lead all individuals in the ACC with 94 hits, which ranks eighth in the NCAA. He logged a team-best .344 batting average to lead the Pack and rank second in the ACC. He’s averaged 1.54 hits per game to pace the conference and rank 17th in the nation. The Wolfpack’s centerfielder recorded at least one hit in 53 of 60 games, highlighted by hitting streaks of 13 and 11 games. McLain’s 29 multi-hit games led the ACC and he also put together an 18-game reached base safely streak. He started every game this season and did not commit an error. McLain charted 12 stolen bases on 15 attempts. He was also drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 14thround last season, but returned to school and improved his stock five rounds.

Brock Deatherage | Burlington, N.C. | OF
Second Team All-ACC

Deatherage’s strong senior season earned the NC State outfielder Second Team All-ACC honors. He logged a .307 batting average, which was the third best on the team. Deatherage hit 14 home runs on the year, as one of five players on the squad with 10 or more home runs. He recorded his first career multi-homer game against UNC-Chapel Hill earlier this season and logged three for the year. He played in 227 career games and started 215 of those contests. He had 15 multi-hit games this year with 12 multi-RBI games. Deatherage finished his Wolfpack career with 223 hits, 159 runs, 109 RBI and a .286 batting average. He was selected in the 29th round of last year’s draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, but elected to return for his senior year and improved his stock by 19 rounds.

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NC State Baseball

NC State Came From Behind to Beat UNC 5-4 Securing 1st Home Series Win Over the Tar Heels Since 2016!

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3 hours ago

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April 19, 2024

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NC State came from behind to defeat their rival #11 UNC 5-4, winning their first series at home against the Tar Heels since 2016. The last time NC State won a series against UNC was in Chapel Hill in 2021.

A good team learns to take advantage of their opponents mistakes, and that’s exactly what the Wolfpack did this evening. Of the 5 runs they scored, only 3 of them were earned.

In the Bottom of the 8th inning, with the Wolfpack trailing 4-2, Junior Shortstop Brandon Butterworth was the author of late-game heroics once again, hitting an RBI Single, knocking in Senior 3rd Baseman Alec Makarewicz, but the play wasn’t over. Butterworth advanced to 2nd on a wild pitch, and Junior Catcher Jacob Cozart scored on a Wild Pitch. After a groundout by Junior Outfielder Chase Nixon, Butterworth would score on a Passed Ball during the next at bat, scoring the winning run of the game.

Sophomore Dominic Fritton was fairly steady, giving up 4 earned runs in 6 innings pitched, striking out 7 (4 walks). Fortunately, no one was on base for all three of UNC’s Home Runs.

When Fritton left the game, the Pack was trailing 4-1, with their only run coming off of an RBI Double by Senior 1st Baseman Garrett Pennington in the Bottom of the 3rd.

The Wolfpack bullpen was exceptional this evening, putting 0’s on the board for 3 straight innings after Fritton exited the game. Freshman Jaxon Lucas pitched two scoreless innings with 2 K’s, and Freshman Jacob Dudan pitched a scoreless 9th, picking up his 4th Save of the year. Lucas was credited with the Win, and is 2-0 on the year.

While I’m dishing out kudos, I don’t want to forget Sophomore Center Fielder Eli Serrano III’s RBI Double in the Bottom of the 7th, cutting UNC’s lead to 2 Runs.

This NC State is peaking at the right time, against the right teams.

The Wolfpack will look to finish things off with a sweep tomorrow afternoon, with the first pitch scheduled for 3pm.

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NC State Baseball

WATCH All 9 of NC State’s RBI’s From Their 9-8 Walk-Off Win Over #11 UNC

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1 day ago

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April 18, 2024

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NC State just defeated their rival #11 UNC 9-8 in dramatic fashion, walking it off in the Bottom of the 9th inning via a Solo Home Run from Junior Shortstop Brandon Butterworth.

The Wolfpack victory snapped a 5-game losing streak to the Tar Heels.

Check out all 9 RBI’s from NC State’s 6th walk-off win of the season, which leads the nation.

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NC State Baseball

NC State Defeats #11 UNC 9-8 with Walk-Off HR in Series Opener

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April 18, 2024

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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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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NC State Baseball

NC State vs. UNC: A Historical Perspective

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1 day ago

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April 18, 2024

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The Wolfpack and the Tar Heels face one another on the diamond at 7pm on ACC Network.

NC State holds a 139-175-1 record against North Carolina in the all-time series.

NC State’s most recent series victory over North Carolina came in style, taking all three games in Chapel Hill with a three-game sweep over the Tar Heels from March 26-29, 2021. The Wolfpack allowed just six runs over three games in a dominant sweep over UNC, outscoring the Tar Heels 23-6 .

NC State has hosted UNC just twice over the past eight seasons. NC State’s most recent home series victory over North Carolina came from May 19-21, 2016. The Wolfpack won the rubber match, claiming the series with a dominant 10-1 victory on May 21.

North Carolina has won five straight in the series dating back to a series at Doak Field at Dail Park in 2022. NC State’s most recent win over the Tar Heels came in game one of a doubleheader on May 8, 2022, cruising to a 9-2 victory over UNC.

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