NC State softball was stumped by Marist 2-1 in the second game of it’s doubleheader on Friday to start the Homewood Suites Challenge.
A pitching duel broke out at Dail Softball Stadium as the Pack (16-12, 3-5 ACC) could not find an answer for the Marist (9-16) pitcher, Kallen Leeseberg, who struck out 11 batters. NC State looked for the timely hits all night but left 10 runners on base.
“[Leeseberg] did a really good job at keeping us off balance,” head coach Shawn Rychcik said. “I think we pressed a little when we got runners in scoring position and changed our at-bats. Ten runners on means we were doing some things right, working the bats and really doing a good job then, but I think when we got runners in scoring position, we pressed a little bit.”
Freshman starting pitcher Kama Woodall cruised through the first two innings, but ran into trouble in the third inning. Two singles and an error by senior shortstop Alyssa Compton produced two runs and Marist went up 2-0.
NC State bounced back in the bottom half of the third inning with a leadoff walk, followed by back-to-back one-out singles to load the bases. Unfortunately for the Pack, sophomore outfielder Angie Rizzi was called out on batter’s interference and freshman third baseman Timberlyn Shurbutt popped out to end the inning.
There was a similar result in the fourth inning for the Pack. With two runners in scoring position and one out, Leeseberg struck out the next two NC State batters to end the threat.
The Wolfpack threatened again in the fifth inning. Sophomore outfielder Jade Caraway walked with one out and then took second and third on a wild pitch from Leeseberg. Shurbutt advanced to first after being hit by a pitch and strolled to second on another wild pitch.
After being down in the count 1-2, junior first baseman Cheyenne Balzer worked a walk to load the bases for the Pack. However, freshman second baseman Chandley Garner could not come through with two outs, leaving three runners on base.
“We couldn’t create the break,” Rychcik said. “They happen sometimes automatically and if they don’t we gotta get them and we just didn’t have the timely hit we needed.”
Woodall stranded two runners in the sixth inning to keep the score at 2-0. She pitched six innings, struck out five batters and gave up two runs on only three hits. Sophomore pitcher Devin Wallace came in for the seventh inning and gave up an infield hit to the leadoff batter and a two-out walk, but escaped without giving up a run.
“I thought [Woodall] did a good job and competed out there,” Rychcik said. “For me, I’m glad to see her getting healthy and I thought that game was better than the game she threw at Georgia Tech, so hopefully it’s a step forward for her and just getting back out on the mound and being consistent for us.”
With the Pack down by two, it needed at least two runs to extend the game. To start the inning, Caraway put a spark of energy into the NC State dugout by hitting a line-drive home run off the scoreboard in right field.
Then, Shurbutt reached on an infield single with one out to put the tying run on base. After a pop-out by Balzer, Leeseberg closed out the game with her 11th strikeout. This was a disappointing loss for the Pack after a 9-1 win over Niagara in the previous game.
“There are no easy games in this tournament,” Rychcik said. “Niagara, if we play them again, will play us tough so there is never any easy games, so we need to be there for the challenge right off the bat tomorrow.”
NC State will continue the weekend tournament on Saturday at 12:15 p.m. against Kennesaw at Dail Softball Stadium. There will also be a second game on Saturday with a time and opponent to be determined.
