After taking two of three from Boston College on Friday afternoon at Curtis and Jacqueline Dail Softball Stadium, State trailed 3-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning of the final game. A single and two home runs later, the Pack was back in the game.
Junior Alyssa Allbritten and senior Allison Presnell hit back-to-back homers in the bottom of the seventh inning Saturday afternoon to bring State past Boston College 4-3 and complete a three-game series sweep.
“In years past, we wouldn’t capitalize or we’d give up. This year, we believe in each other and hitters,” Presnell said. “I love being the underdog because people just don’t see you coming.”
Lindsay Campana got the start but was pulled after four innings. Morgan Peeler earned her first ACC win in relief.
Presnell’s walk-off home run, the second of her career, lifted State (23-15, 6-3 ACC) to its fourth victory in a row. The series sweep was the latest in a series of impressive wins for the Pack, which has quietly leapt out to a solid early ACC record after being bounced in the first round of the playoffs last year.
“The first half of the season, things were up and down, but we came out with a winning record,” Allbritten said.
State opened some eyes last weekend, taking two of three from No. 12 UNC-Chapel Hill on the road. Though the Tar Heels were much better on paper, Presnell said she had no doubts her teammates would be able to pull out her final regular season game against their in-state rival.
“They’re a great team and our rival, so it made it even sweeter,” Presnell said. “I knew riding on the bus over to Chapel Hill that we were going to win. It didn’t matter that they were better than us. We’re comparable with any team.”
After the 2009 season concluded, State lost one pitcher and four players total. Those who remained have stepped up and moved forward with a deep postseason on their sights.
Presnell credits the team’s current success to solid defense and timely hitting. Allbritten said the team’s hitting has not only been timely, but powerful.
“We’ve been hitting a lot of home runs lately, so we just have to work on stringing them together,” Allbritten said.
The Seminoles are up next for the Pack. The team will travel to Tallahassee in a three-game series April 10-11.
