The NC State softball teams welcomes the Pittsburgh Panthers to Dail Softball Stadium this weekend for the first ACC series of the season for each team.
The Panthers come in at 8-5-1, coming off a 3-2 weekend at the Chanticleer Showdown in Conway, South Carolina.
Catcher Giorgiana Zeremenko is one of the best hitters in the ACC and she leads the Panthers’ offense. She is hitting .356 with six home runs so far this season. She also has three doubles and 10 RBIs. Infielder Kaitlyn Kruger and outfielder Erin Hershman are tied for second on the team with three home runs each. First baseman Gabrielle Fredericks has two home runs and nine RBIs.
Sarah Dawson leads Pitt on the mound. She has a record of 6-3 and a 1.82 ERA. She has 28 strikeouts and 42.1 innings pitched. Kayla Harris has started six games this year and has a 2.52 ERA in 33.1 innings. The Pack will see a heavy dose of these two pitchers.
The Pack comes at in 12-5 and has won three in a row after Wednesday’s 4-2 win over UNC-Wilmington.
Freshman outfielder Sam Russ leads the Pack with a .415 batting average and a .500 on-base percentage. Freshman catcher Lily Bishop is only hitting .225 but leads the team with three home runs. Junior infielder Cheyenne Balzer and freshman infielder Timberlyn Shurbutt have 13 and 11 RBIs respectively, which leads the team. Additionally, Balzer and Shurbutt have two home runs apiece.
Sophomore pitcher Devin Wallace, who transferred from Coastal Carolina, has been a revelation for the Pack pitching. She has a 1.94 ERA in 61.1 innings, including a no-hitter on Friday against Wagner. Freshman Kama Woodall has been excellent as well, with a 3.03 ERA in 34.2 innings. Wallace and Woodall have provided consistency on the rubber that the Pack hasn’t had in the last two years. The team ERA is 2.28 so far this year.
This matchup will likely come down to if the Pack pitching can quiet the Pitt bats, especially Zeremenko. These are two quality teams who will likely be fighting for a berth in the ACC tournament, so this is a big opening weekend for both teams, especially for NC State since it is a home series.
First pitch on Friday will be at 5 p.m., 2 p.m. on Saturday and 12 p.m. on Sunday at Dail Softball Stadium. The games will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
