The NC State softball team was swept by No. 3 Florida State this past weekend, dropping games 9-0, 8-6 and 8-0.
The Wolfpack (16-14, 0-6 ACC) struggled all weekend to score runs, getting shut out twice, including being no-hit in the opening 9-0 loss.
In the first game, the Seminoles (32-3, 5-1 ACC) tagged right-hander Devin Wallace for three runs in the first inning and never looked back, scoring two in the third inning and four in the fourth inning to mercy-rule the Wolfpack in five innings.
A walk apiece by sophomore left fielder Sam Russ and junior right fielder Brigette Nordberg was all the Pack could get going offensively as it struggled to figure out FSU starter Meghan King, who struck out 11 batters in her complete-game no-hitter.
NC State’s bats came alive in the second game, with sophomore infielder Logan Morris going 2 for 4 and Nordberg smacking a grand slam in the second inning, but it wasn’t enough as the Seminoles knocked freshman right-hander Sydney Nester and Wallace around for four runs apiece and came back to win.
With NC State leading 4-3 after Nordberg’s grand slam, the Seminoles tied the game up in the third inning, then took the lead in the fourth. A three-run fifth inning gave Florida State the insurance it needed, and the Pack’s upset hopes were dashed.
The Wolfpack offense went dormant once again in the third game of the series, picking up just two singles and a triple by Russ, failing to score any of the three. Florida State mercy ruled the Pack once again, with King stifling NC State for the second time, striking out 12 batters in her six shutout innings.
Morris was the only player for the Pack to record more than one hit on the weekend, and even making contact was an issue for the offense, as it struck out 32 times in 18 innings over the course of its three games.
Continuing a weeks-long offensive struggle, NC State went just 9 for 62 (.145 batting average) at the plate this weekend, mustering only three extra-base hits. With its six runs on the weekend, the Wolfpack has now scored 27 runs in its last 13 games and has scored more than four runs just twice in that span.
NC State will return to action on Wednesday at 6 p.m. when it takes on UNC-Wilmington at Dail Softball Stadium.
