Coming off a season where she led the team in innings pitched, appearances, starts, saves and ERA, junior right-handed pitcher Rylee Wyman will carry an even heavier workload in 2025 for NC State softball. In her third season with the team and on the mound, Wyman will need to dominate the strike zone more than ever in order for the Wolfpack to find success this season.
As a freshman in 2023, Wyman was thrust into a starting role and had limited success. In her first year, Wyman finished with a 2-9 record, 74.1 innings pitched, 45 strikeouts and an 8.48 ERA — the worst of three pitchers who averaged one inning pitched per game.
Wyman had to sit back and watch as fellow freshman at the time, junior right-handed pitcher Madison Inscoe, took on that lead spot. In her first year, Inscoe led all NC State pitchers with 130.2 innings pitched and 25 starts.
Luckily for Wyman, Inscoe’s versatility as a two-way player has benefitted her. In 2023, Inscoe appeared in one game as the designated hitter, but in 2024 she appeared in 33 games as DH. From 2023 to 2024, Inscoe’s batting average jumped from .160 to .313 on one less at-bat.
As a result of Inscoe’s usage in spots other than the mound, Wyman’s innings pitched and starts jumped from 74.1 and 15, respectively, in 2023 to 111 and 19 in 2024. Inscoe on the other hand, saw her number of innings pitched reduced by 42.1.
Wyman’s evolution began in 2024 when first-year head coach Lindsay Leftwich trusted her to start big games and she rewarded that faith. In the series opener against then-No. 15/13 Virginia Tech, Wyman pitched a complete game, only allowing four runs as the Pack went on to upset the Hokies for its first ACC win of the year.
At the end of the season, Wyman notched two more complete games against No. 5 Duke, only giving up 12 hits in 14 innings pitched as the Pack fell by a combined three runs in those two games.
One of Wyman’s best performances from last year came against UConn early in the season. In another complete game, Wyman totaled 11 strikeouts — a career-high.
“She had a phenomenal performance,” Leftwich said following her team’s game against UConn. “She spent a lot of time working on her mental game this week and just really showed up and competed a lot better than she has before.”
Mental toughness will be key, not just for Wyman but for the whole team. Every pitcher will have their back against the wall at some point in the season, and the Pack’s success will come down to how they respond. Wyman is now a veteran pitcher for the Wolfpack and will be looked to as a leader.
The junior has pitched 10 innings in 2025, a complete game against Cal State Bakersfield and three innings against UCF. With mixed results, Wyman has played well but the team is going to need her to be better.
NC State is coming off a season to forget from a record standpoint but is a team that returns a lot of its starters from last year, including Wyman. If the whole team can find its footing as a middle-of-the-standings ACC team, don’t be surprised if it’s Wyman leading the way.
