N.C. State won a wild game in Clemson, S.C., beating the No.14 Tigers 7-1 at a rain-soaked Doug Kingsmore Stadium Monday night.
Shortstop Andrew Knizner and first baseman Preston Palmeiro combined for three RBIs Monday, powering N.C. State (19-12, 5-10 ACC) to its second straight conference victory.
Knizner, now batting cleanup in the order, saw the ball well all weekend against the Tigers. The standout freshman went 6-for-13 at the plate during State’s three-game series against Clemson, notching three RBIs and his fourth home run of the year, tied for most on the team.
Despite a string of questionable calls by the umpires, head coach Elliott Avent helped the Wolfpack keep its cool throughout the contest. Avent said his players took a big step in the right direction by taking two of three games on the road against the nation’s No. 14 team.
“I’m really proud of this ball club,” Avent said. “They played their tails off this week in one of the toughest places to play in college baseball. It was a really great effort by a lot of people.”
The umpires had a difficult time making accurate calls in the rain Monday. Instant replays showed the umpires were incorrect in a play at the plate in the fourth inning and a “safe” ruling at first base in the eighth inning, with both calls going against the Wolfpack. Avent said his team also did a great job of responding to adversity.
“A few calls went against us today, but that’s the game of baseball,” Avent said. “I’m not a big fan of instant replay, but I certainly see why it was invented.”
Knizner said State’s players didn’t let the missed calls affect them.
“We try not to focus on the umpires,” Knizner said. “They’re human, and they make the right calls sometimes and the wrong calls sometimes. But all of our coaches were really positive and told us to stay focused and don’t worry if you get a bad call, just move on to the next pitch. Forget what’s happened in the past and move on.”
The Wolfpack wasted no time in taking the lead. Junior shortstop Trea Turner drew a leadoff walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Two batters later, Knizner slapped a line drive to right-center, scoring Turner to give State a 1-0 lead.
The Pack threatened again in the second, loading the bases with no outs before a 1-2-3 double play seemed to quell the threat. State’s next batter hit a routine grounder up the middle, but sophomore shortstop Tyler Krieger’s throw to first base was off the mark, scoring two Wolfpack runners and giving State a 3-0 lead.
The Tigers responded in the bottom half of the inning, stealing home after a wild pitch to cut the deficit to two runs. But strong pitching from freshman right-hander Joe O’Donnell and junior southpaw Patrick Peterson kept Clemson’s bats at bay for the rest of the game.
The fourth inning was where controversial calls began to come into play. Turner was ejected for slamming his bat on the ground after a called third strike.
After Turner’s dismissal, Palmeiro laced a sharp grounder up the middle, evading the reach of Clemson’s infielders. The hit scored freshman right fielder Garrett Suggs and Palmeiro advanced to second after some heads-up base running.
State’s next batter, junior catcher Brett Austin, reached base on a fielding error, but the umpire called Palmeiro out at home plate. Instant replays showed the call to be incorrect, but with replays unavailable to the officiating crew, the “out” call stood.
A sacrifice fly from Knizner in the seventh inning gave State a 5-1 lead, and the Pack added two more insurance runs in the ninth inning to clinch the game.
Avent said he was proud of his team for persevering in the wake of disappointing results to start the ACC schedule.
“Sometimes it’s hard in life to keep busting it when things aren’t going your way,” Avent said. “But that’s what these guys decided to do this weekend and I’m very proud of them. It was a great team effort from so many people, and it was fun to watch guys play together with the toughness of an N.C. State baseball team.”
