NC State baseball dropped its fifth game in a row as it fell to the UNC-Wilmington Seahawks 5-4 in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Much to its recent struggles, pitching and untimely offensive struggles were a detriment to NC State (18-12). Throughout the evening, it had opportunities to fight back with UNCW (20-13) but didn’t capitalize on most, leaving an astounding 10 runners stranded on base.
However, one constant on offense remained and that was the bat of graduate third baseman Alec Makarewicz. He finished the evening with a pair of home runs which accounted for four RBIs on four total hits. He spearheaded a ninth-inning comeback attempt but the Pack came just short.
Starting on the mound for NC State was senior right-handed pitcher Hollis Fanning who shifted over from his usual relief duties. The game did not get off to the best start for him as the Seahawks loaded the bases with only one out in the first inning. He responded by collecting two outs afterward. However, UNCW drew first blood as it brought one run home as a product of a sacrifice flyout to put the score at 1-0.
In the second inning, the Seahawks picked up where they left off as another base hit and a hit batter put the Pack in a defensive position. As the runners advanced, a balk from Fanning brought in another Seahawk run. They were not done as another base hit scored the remaining runner to put the Pack’s deficit at 3-0.
Through the first two innings, the Pack didn’t muster much on offense. However, it started to break through in the third. After the first two batters were retired, graduate first baseman Garrett Pennington singled to help keep the inning alive. Makarewicz came up to the plate the following at-bat and capitalized, drilling his first homer of the night. This gave NC State new life as the inning came to a close with a 3-2 score.
In the bottom of the third, UNCW continued to cause problems on the base paths. It quickly put two runners on. The Seahawks proceeded to drive in one more run to put the score at 4-2.
After a rough start for the Wolfpack on the mound, it brought in junior left-handed pitcher Win Scott, who limited the danger fairly well. For a season-high 4.2 innings on the mound, Scott and the rest of the team did their part in cooling off the Seahawk offense. A bump in the road came in the fifth inning as UNCW belted a one-run homer to further extend its lead to 5-2. In the meantime, Scott remained poised on the mound to allow the team to climb back in.
Since breaking through in the third inning, NC State had been mostly quiet. In the seventh, it appeared that would be the case again after consecutive strikeouts. However, Makarewicz returned to the plate for more. Batting on the opposite side of the box from his first at-bat, he proceeded to smack another homer to cut the deficit to 5-3.
In the bottom of the seventh, NC State turned to sophomore right-handed pitcher Derrick Smith to relieve Scott. What resulted proved to be a career performance for him as he pitched a season-high two innings in which he prevented any hits. Generating momentum on defense, Smith was dialed as he tallied two strikeouts in the seventh and struck out the side in the eighth.
Heading into the ninth inning, the Pack found itself down two runs. It soon got going as a walk and base hit put two runners in scoring position. As Makarewicz came to the plate for his fifth appearance, it was all too fitting that he smoked a single to bring home a run to make the score 5-4. With two runners on, the Pack had a chance to take the lead but two quick outs following brought an end to the comeback attempt.
The Pack’s road trip continues this weekend as it travels to take on No. 2 Clemson with the series opener set for Friday, April 12. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be televised on ACC Network Extra.
