CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Like a boxer taking punch after punch, NC State baseball tried to hang with North Carolina but crumbled in an 8-1 loss to open the rivalry series.
The Wolfpack (31-16, 15-9 ACC) punched first when junior left fielder Josh Hogue battered a solo homer to snag a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Little did NC State know, that was the closest it would come to victory, failing to score the rest of the way. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels (37-10, 16-9 ACC) pounded away at the red-and-white all night. By the end, Carolina had thoroughly dominated at the plate and on the mound and dusted the Wolfpack on the scoreboard.
The Wolfpack ran into a buzzsaw in Carolina pitcher Jake Knapp. The Tar Heel ace proved to be nearly unstoppable, retiring 18 consecutive batters at one point. Pitching eight innings, Knapp allowed just one run and five hits. With a strong fastball and impressive command, Knapp challenged the Wolfpack hitters. The red-and-white never adjusted, instead hitting a barrage of high fly balls for easy outs. NC State finished hitting .161 against UNC, in large part due to Knapp’s performance.
“I don’t think they’ve lost a game that he’s pitched and you can see why,” said head coach Elliot Avent. “He’s 93 to 96 [miles per hour] the entire game and commanding that fastball… That’s as good of command of a fastball at that velocity that I’ve seen this year, so you tip your hat to him.”
The Tar Heels are 12-0 this season in games where Knapp has appeared.
NC State mixed things up by allowing sophomore pitcher Ryan Marohn to pitch the series opener after his Sunday outing against Miami was cut short due to weather. Marohn fought and pitched 6.1 innings, but left too many pitches over the plate for UNC. While the Heels didn’t hit a home run, they took full advantage with ten hits against Marohn, including a trio of doubles.
“I thought Ryan Marohn pitched well,” Avent said. “He was just probably too much on the plate, it was the contrast of what Knapp was, he was probably over the middle too much, but he competed.”
Arguably the most concerning part of NC State’s performance was its fielding woes. With two official errors, and multiple other plays where the Wolfpack looked a step slow in the field, it was not a day to remember for the Pack. Momentum shifted in UNC’s favor when junior third baseman Matt Heavner sailed a throw to first base in the second inning. The base runner ultimately scored and NC State never recovered in the field. Contrasted with a clean outing from the Heels in the field, the Wolfpack will have to be sharper the rest of the series to win.
NC State returns to Boshamer Stadium tomorrow at 6 p.m. for another matchup against Carolina. Junior pitcher Dominic Fritton is projected to start for NC State as the Pack looks to even the series.
