Since junior Marcus Jones got to N.C. State in the fall of 2005, he has provided the baseball team with comic relief, always trying to keep the mood around Doak Field light.

Since this time last year, Jones has become much more than the light-hearted guy in the clubhouse, though. With hard work and belief in himself, he has developed into one of the Wolfpack’s best players.

“He’s played so well since the second half of last season,” coach Elliott Avent said. “Right now, he’s like a lot of our players, he’s playing real well. He’s playing with a lot of heart and a lot of love for N.C. State.”

After this past weekend’s series against Duke, Jones is near the top in all of State’s statistical categories, batting .303 with 36 hits, five home runs and 27 runs batted in while not committing an error all year.

Junior Drew Martin, the Pack’s third baseman and Jones’ roommate, knows how good of a baseball player Jones is.

“He’s an all-around good player,” he said. ” He goes all-out every day and gives you everything. I think he’s going to do big things.”

Avent said that in Jones’ sophomore year he took what the coaches had been telling him and ran with it.

“He started working a lot harder,” Avent said. “Usually when you work a lot harder, that’s when you start believing in yourself a little more.”

For Jones, all his hard work and the coaches’ advice finally came together during the midway point of his second season with the Pack.

“I was overthinking stuff,” he said. ‘The more and more I worked at [baseball], the more and more I learned. One day it clicked, and I just rolled with it.”

Avent said he knew Jones had the natural ability to be a good player, and he was happy to see success come for State’s centerfielder.

“He’s a guy that’s going to keep getting better as long as he keeps believing in himself and understands there is more work to be done,” he said. “It’s good to see good things happen to good human beings.”

And as for Jones’ initial role as the clubhouse comedian, he still has it, and it’s just as important to the team as it ever was. Martin said the ‘happy-go-lucky’ spirit Jones keeps helps the baseball team to stay positive and not take things too seriously.

“He’s a goofball,” Martin said. “He makes us laugh and keeps us on our toes all the time.”

Jones said the joking around and attempting to keep the mood light comes naturally.

“That’s just the type of person I am. I like having fun,” he said. “I’m smiling all the time, joking with everyone.”

Jones said the team’s recent hot streak has been facilitated by its way of not taking things too seriously and just playing the game, much like he does.

“We don’t worry too much about things. We just play,” he said of the Pack. “We know we’re playing good baseball right now, and what we’re trying to do is keep plying hard and having fun.”

Baseball vs. East CarolinaWhen: 6:30 p.m. todayWhere: Doak FieldAdmission: free with student IDSeries record: 61-36Last 10 vs. ECU: 8-2Coach Elliott Avent vs. Pirates: 13-9