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NC State Baseball

NC State’s Kevin Keatts Talks Seton Hall: BULLETED

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6 years ago

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NC State head coach Kevin Keatts spoke with the media today about the Wolfpack’s upcoming trip to Wichita to face Seton Hall this Thursday. You can watch it here, or check it out in bulleted format below.

Opening

  • Excited about the opportunity. NC State hasn’t gone the past couple of years. Huge for us. Most of the guys on this team haven’t played on this big of a stage. Al Freeman played three years in the dance, Malik and Lennard once as Freshmen.
  • We have our work cut out for us with so many inexperienced guys.
  • From a coaching and staff perspective, this will be their third NCAA in as many years. They’ve done a tremendous job.

Seton Hall

  • Seton Hall gets out in transition, and shoots the ball well. Elite big guys. Mix up defense. Swagger and toughness.
  • They start 4 guys who have played in back-to-back NCAA’s. They’re hungry.
  • In the press conference they said Desi Rodriguez’s ankle was 75%, which means he will be 95%. I expect him to be at full strength. He’s good. Matchup problem. He has great size and will post our little guys up. He can get to the basket and is the emotional leader.

NC State

  • We are going to go and have more fun than the other 67 teams this week. We will prepare, and I want them to be excited. Want them to do what they have done all year: play hard and compete.
  • It means a lot to do this in the first year. If you look at how we started, picked 12th in the ACC, the way we started ACC play, and then finished tied for 3rd.
  • You could have your best team here at NC State and may not win 11 conference games. Excited about what these guys did in a short period of time.
  • This means everything to Sam Hunt. Such a wonderful and humble kid. NC kid that grew up an ACC guy and is playing with NC State in the NCAA tournament. Hope he’s so excited that he hits 6 threes in a game.
  • We have to compete like it’s your last game. Leave it all on the floor for 40 minutes. Don’t worry about the next game. Don’t worry about rest. Live in the moment.
  • Against BC we didn’t play well in the first half, but 2nd half was more of our identity. Played well. We didn’t fly around enough on defense. We didn’t hit shots at the beginning, and weren’t able to get in our press. I thought we just missed shots. Omer missed chippies. Don’t think it was the big stage. I know I’m fighting the NC State Stuff. This wasn’t STUFF. We missed shots. Give BC credit. They played good.
  • Georgia Tech was a game of different styles, & they played good basketball.
  • Gave the guys a couple of days off. Practiced for an hour and fifteen minutes yesterday. They were business like. Played hard. These guys have moved on from the loss. From a coaching stand point, it’s harder to move on.

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Matthew is Publisher and Co-Owner of Pack Insider. He is also the Lead Pastor of The Point Church in Cary, NC.

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NC State Baseball

#20 NC State Upsets #7 FSU 8-7 in Game 1 Down in Tallahassee

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6 hours ago

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May 3, 2024

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#20 NC State upset #7 Florida St. 8-7 in the series opener down in Tallahassee this evening.

Freshman Cooper Consiglio was the hero on the mound this evening, coming in after Senior Sam Highfill and Sophomore Shane Van Dam, pitching 4.1 innings, while giving up only 1 earned run and striking out 5. It was probably Consiglio’s best performance of his collegiate career, marking the first time he’s ever pitched 4 innings, and given up 1 run or less. He now is 2-4 on the year with a 5.66 ERA.

Sophomore Derrick Smith picked up his 4th Save of the year, failing to give up a hit in 1.2 innings pitched, while striking out 3.

Junior Catcher Jacob Cozart got things started off for the Wolfpack in the Top of the 2nd hitting his 9th Home Run in the past 9 games, and his 15th of the year.

Sophomore 2nd Baseman Matt Heavner led the Pack with 2 RBI’s tonight. The first followed Cozart’s bomb, hitting a Single in the Top of the 2nd that scored Sophomore Left Fielder Luke Nixon. Then Junior Chase Nixon hit a Single, and 2 NC State runners scored due to a wild throw.

Then in the Top of the 3rd, Heavner knocked in another run with a Sac Bunt, that scored Luke Nixon.

Then Sophomore Center Fielder Eli Serrano III hit an RBI Single that scored Chase Nixon, giving the Wolfpack a 6-2 lead.

In the Top of the 6th, Senior 3rd Baseman Alec Makarewicz hit a solo Home Run, his 18th of the season.

In the same inning, Junior Shortstop Brandon Butterworth scored on a wild pitch, giving the Wolfpack their 8th run of the evening.

Senior starting Pitcher Sam Highfill was only able to pitch 2 innings, giving up 2 earned runs. Sophomore Shane Van Dam continues to struggle in relief, giving up 3 earned runs in 1 inning. His ERA is now up to 5.17. Van Dam left the game with an injury, which might have led to his exit.

The Wolfpack and the Seminoles will play Game 2 tomorrow at 7pm.

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NC State Baseball

NC State Baseball Bracketology Report Heading Into Series Against FSU

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2 days ago

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May 2, 2024

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#20 NC State will head down to Tallahassee tomorrow for a 3-game series against #7 FSU. Before they do, here’s a look at where NC State is projected to land in the 2024 NCAA Tournament as things currently stand.

Last week, both D1Baseball and Baseball America projected the Wolfpack to play as a #2 seed in the Greenville Regional (ECU), with the former projecting the Pirates to be a #6 seed, and the latter projecting them to be a #8 seed.

This week, D1Baseball has NC State as a #2 seed in the Lexington Regional, with Kentucky as a #5 seed. Baseball America still has the Wolfpack as a #2 seed in the Greenville Region, with the Pirates still sitting as a #8 seed.

D1Baseball

Baseball America

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NC State Baseball

#20 NC State Loses 4-5 to UNCW, Losing 5th Straight Midweek Game

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3 days ago

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April 30, 2024

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#20 NC State lost to UNC-Wilmington 4-5 this evening at home, losing their 5th straight midweek game. The Wolfpack were swept by the Seahawks this year, ironically losing 4-5 down in Wilmington on April 9th.

Freshman Ryan Marohn got the starting nod, and he was excellent, giving up 1 earned run in 5 innings pitched, striking out 7. It was arguably his best start since his collegiate debut against VCU in the opening series.

Sophomore Shane Van Dam was Mr. Reliable through much of the season, but he hasn’t had his best stuff as of late. This evening, he faced four batters, hitting 2, walking another, and surrendering a hit to the other. Van Dam failed to record an out, and gave up 3 earned runs. Heading into the UNC game back on April 18th, Van Dam had a 2.63 ERA. After the past 4 appearances, his ERA has shot up to 3.96.

Freshman Jacob Dudan settled things down, pitching 4 scoreless innings, giving up only 1 hit, while striking out 5.

Unfortunately, Sophomore Derrick Smith allowed the Seahawks to score a run in the Top of the 10th, which was enough for the opposing team to leave Raleigh with a win, with NC State failing to score a run in the final 5 frames.

Junior Jacob Cozart continues an insane power surge, hitting two more Home Runs tonight. Cozart has hit 7 Home Runs in the past 6 games.

Cozart now has 14 Home Runs on the year. His previous career high was 11.

Senior 1st Baseman Garrett Pennington also hit a Solo Home Run, his 11th bomb of the year.

On Friday, the Wolfpack will head down to Tallahassee for a 3-game series against #7 Florida State.

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NC State Baseball

NC State Outfielder Josh Hogue Out for Remainder of the Season

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5 days ago

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April 29, 2024

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NC State will be without Sophomore Right Fielder Josh Hogue for the remainder of the season. Hogue unfortunately suffered a fractured leg due to a collision with Center Fielder Eli Serrano III on Saturday, with both players diving for a ball in the outfield.

Hogue will have to undergo surgery, and he is expected to be out 4 months.

This is a huge loss for the Wolfpack. Hogue has been batting 3rd in NC State’s lineup, with the 3rd best batting average on the squad (.314) and 4th best OPS (.848).

On Sunday, Freshman 2nd Baseman Luke Nixon moved out to Right Field to fill the void, and his brother Chase Nixon was in Right. Starter Senior Noah Soles has been out since the Notre Dame Series at the end of March, but he has been taking batting practice and should be returning soon.

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