The NC State baseball team fell in a series against Wake Forest over the weekend in Winston-Salem as Pack opened conference play. It was the Demon Deacons’ first series win over State since 2002.
The Wolfpack (8-8, 1-2 ACC) lost the first game of the series, 6-4, Friday and split the doubleheader Saturday, winning the first matchup, 8-5, and dropping the second in extra innings, 6-5. The Demon Deacons improve to 12-5 on the year and move to 2-1 in ACC play.
In the first game of the series, senior lefty Sean Adler got the start but struggled, surrendering five earned runs in just four innings of work. The Southern California transfer also struck out two and allowed to free passes.
After allowing three early runs by the Demon Deacons, freshman catcher Brad Debo got things started for the Pack with a double to drive in junior centerfielder Josh McLain, cutting the lead to 3-1 in the third inning. Wake struck back with two runs of its own, but junior first baseman Shane Shepard launched a three-run home run for the Pack, narrowing the score to 5-4 in favor of Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons earned one more run and held the Wolfpack in check to win 6-4.
Adler was charged with the loss and is currently sporting a 4.64 ERA on the season. He has started four games, striking out an impressive 19 batters in just over 21 innings of action.
In the first matchup of the doubleheader, the Wolfpack went down 5-1 by the end of the fourth inning, but plated seven unanswered runs to defeat Wake Forest for its first conference win of the season. Junior lefty Brian Brown received his first start of the season, working three frames and yielding just one run and scattering three hits. Senior Joe O’Donnell picked up the win, working three and one-third innings and holding the Deacs scoreless.
In the decisive third game of the series and second game of the double header, the Wolfpack turned to freshman Dalton Feeney, who turned in three innings and surrendered just one run. Head coach Elliot Avent used eight different pitchers in the game, which went 11 innings.
In what seemed to be a common theme in the series, the Pack went down 5-0 and trailed by the same score entering the top of the eighth. Junior outfielder Brock Deatherage drove in a run to cut the lead to 5-1. Freshman infielder Will Wilson then launched a grand slam, the first for the Wolfpack on the season and the second home run of Wilson’s career, evening the score at five runs apiece.
The game would go to extra innings, and despite a couple of opportunities for the Pack to take the lead, Wake Forest eventually scored the decisive run on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eleventh to win 6-5 and take the series.
Sophomore Christian Demby, who started the game as the designated hitter, was charged with the loss as a pitcher.
The Wolfpack will travel to Elon Tuesday for a 4 p.m. contest and then take on George Mason at Doak Field Wednesday.
