Two days after falling to Army in its first game of the Raleigh Regional at Doak Field, the NC State baseball team got its payback, topping the Black Knights 11-1 in an elimination game Sunday afternoon to stay alive in the NCAA Tournament.
The Wolfpack (42-17) broke out late in a game that was hitless for both teams into the sixth inning, with its offensive production highlighted by two homers from junior first baseman Evan Edwards and another from sophomore shortstop Will Wilson. The Black Knights (37-24) saw their season come to an end, as they were able to put together just three hits.
“I’m just really proud of our guys,” head coach Elliott Avent said. “It’s what they’ve done all year. From start to finish, they’ve done everything they can do and have done it the right way.”
Graduate righty Johnny Piedmonte (5-3, 4.12 ERA) started on the mound for the Wolfpack, and was dealing through four innings before a back injury that has plagued him all season forced him to exit the game. He threw four hitless innings, allowing two walks while striking out two on 52 pitches.
“I’m glad I got the ball today,” Piedmonte said. “I like pitching these elimination games, I’ve done it for the last couple years. I wish I could have gone longer. Some of the lingering stuff throughout the season got to me. It was a little unbearable and tough to throw strikes.”
After walking the first batter of the game, Piedmonte retired 12 straight batters. He came back out to pitch the fifth, and after three straight balls was removed. Sophomore lefty Kent Klyman (8-2, 2.34 ERA) entered from the bullpen, picking up the win after tossing 2.1 innings and allowing two hits and one unearned run.
“I got a little emotional coming off the mound,” Piedmonte said. “That’s the first time I’ve teared up in five years. It was emotional for me.”
The Pack matched its run total from Friday night in the first inning of this one, as the Pack played small ball to bring senior center fielder Josh McLain home to score the opening run. McLain got hit by the second pitch of the game, stole second, moved to third on a ground out and eventually scored on a deep sacrifice fly off the bat of Wilson.
Edwards ended Army pitcher Matt Ball’s no-hit bid with authority, blasting an opposite-field, two-run home run in the sixth inning to put NC State up 3-0 and provide the first base knock of the game.
“I think we were no-hit for about five innings. That guy had a sinker that we couldn’t figure out,” Avent said. “What kept us in there is [Piedmonte] had a no-hitter for the same amount of time. Two starting pitchers were incredible, and we found a way to scratch some runs.”
The Black Knights got their first hit of the game in the bottom of the sixth frame, as first baseman John McKenna singled through the right side of the infield off Klyman to put two runners on after a leadoff walk.
After a double steal moved both runners into scoring position, Army plated its first run of the game on a passed ball charged to freshman catcher Patrick Bailey. Klyman pitched well to limit the damage, striking out two and inducing a groundout to end the inning with NC State leading 3-1.
NC State blew things open in the seventh, tallying five runs on five hits to jump ahead to a 8-1 lead at the stretch. McLain tripled home freshman second baseman J.T. Jarrett to plate the first run of the inning, and the outburst was capped by a two-run double off the wall from Pitarra.
Klyman exited the game in the seventh inning, making way for redshirt junior righty Nolan Clenney (3-0, 3.43 ERA). Clenney would finish the game out, throwing 2.2 scoreless innings.
The Pack added two more runs in the eighth on a no-doubt, two-run homer from Wilson. Edwards launched his second homer of the game to center in the ninth inning to make it 11-1.
NC State lives to see another game, which is scheduled to start just one hour and 49 minutes after the end of its win over Army. The Wolfpack will take on the 2-0 Auburn Tigers at 7 p.m. A loss for the Pack would end its season, while a win will force a winner-take-all final game Monday night at 7 p.m. Freshman lefty David Harrison (1-3, 5.45 ERA) will start on the mound for the Pack.
Senior outfielder Brock Deatherage and junior infielder Evan Edwards celebrate after scoring against Army on Sunday at Doak Field. The Wolfpack beat the Black Knights 11-1.
