NC State baseball powers into ACC Tournament semifinals
There was talk that NC State baseball needed a good showing at the ACC Tournament in Charlotte to ensure an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. D1Baseball.com’s mock bracket had the Wolfpack as one of the last four teams in the field going into the league tourney.
Two days into the event, not only has NC State baseball put to rest any questions about being in the NCAA Tournament, the Pack has its sights set on a potential run to the conference title.
A 9-6 win over No. 3 overall seed Miami, the top team in Pool C, Wednesday evening coupled with an 11-8 win over No. 6 seed Wake Forest on Tuesday clinched NC State’s third consecutive trip to the ACC Tournament semifinals.
The 10th-seeded Pack will play the No. 11 seed Pittsburgh, who similarly had a pair of upsets to secure the win in Pool B, in the semis. Pitt knocked off No. 2 seed Louisville with a walk-off win in game one of Wednesday’s tripleheader at the ACC Tournament after beating No. 7 seed Georgia Tech Tuesday.
NC State’s victory over Miami, ranked No. 5 nationally, was fueled by star freshman Tommy White’s historic slugging performance. White hit three homers, all of them to the opposite field, tying an ACC Tournament record for most home runs in a game and in the process setting a school record for homers in a season with 26.
Sophomore rightfielder Noah Soles also hit a solo homer in the win.
The four homers by two batters Wednesday came after three different NC State hitters crushed home runs in the victory over Wake Forest.
NC State went with redshirt sophomore Logan Whitaker to start vs. Miami, but after getting through two scoreless innings, Whitaker was tagged for four runs in the third and did not make it out of the frame.
NC State baseball coach Elliott Avent then turned to another weekend starter, sophomore Matt Willadsen, and the move proved to be a difference-maker. Willadsen struck out eight Miami batters while allowing two earned runs on four hits and two walks in six innings.
With a runner on first and one out in the ninth, sophomore lefty closer Chris Villaman was called out of the bullpen. Villaman walked his first batter but then struck out the next two to set off the celebration.
Willadsen was credited with the win, improving his record to 5-4. Villaman registered his 10th save of the season.
NC State baseball (34-20) did not play Pittsburgh (29-26) during the regular season. The two are scheduled for a first pitch at 5 p.m. Saturday in the second semifinal game. The game will be televised by ACC Network.
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