NC State topped ECU’s baseball team for the second time this season as the Wolfpack won a home 12-2 decision in eight innings on Tuesday.
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Photo credit: (ECU Sports Information)
RALEIGH, N.C. – The East Carolina Pirates (28-17-1) fell to the NC State Wolfpack (28-16), 12-2, on Tuesday evening at Doak Field at Dail Park, as the Wolfpack used a series of big innings to pull away and secure the run-rule victory.
Both teams struggled to find rhythm early, with neither side breaking through in the first inning. The Pirates showed patience at the plate, putting together a pair of two-out baserunners in the opening frames, highlighted by a walk from Jack Herring and the game’s first hit off the bat of Walker Barron.
NC State struck first in the second inning, using a leadoff single to spark the offense before a triple from Sherman Johnson plated the game’s first run. An RBI single followed to extend the Wolfpack lead to 2-0. ECU starter Nick Moran limited further damage with a trio of strikeouts to close the frame.
The Pirates responded in the third, manufacturing runs without a hit. Braden Burress led off with a single before consecutive walks by Davin Whitaker and Herring loaded the bases. Colby Wallace and Austin Irby each drew bases-loaded walks, forcing in two runs to even the score at 2-2.
The momentum shift was short-lived, as NC State answered in the bottom half of the inning. A walk set the stage for Chris McHugh, who delivered a two-run home run to left field to put the Wolfpack back in front. A sacrifice fly later in the inning extended the advantage to 5-2.
NC State continued to build its lead in the fourth inning, capitalizing on free passes and timely hitting to push across two more runs and make it 7-2. The Wolfpack added to the margin in the seventh, taking advantage of a walk, a wild pitch and a Pirate error to score four runs and extend the lead to 11-2.
East Carolina was limited to just four hits on the night, with Burress, Barron, Wallace and Brayden Bachman each recording one.
The Wolfpack closed out the contest in the eighth inning with a walk-off RBI single to enforce the run rule.
The Pirates had two runs on four hits compared to NC State’s 12 runs and 15 hits. East Carolina totaled 10 strikeouts on the night, only the fourth game on the season for the Pirate offense to reach double-digit strikeouts.
The Pirates look ahead to the weekend, where they will travel to Memphis for another three-game conference series, starting Friday.