After an efficient opening-series sweep over Bucknell and a shutout midweek win at Elon, the NC State baseball team will travel to South Carolina this weekend for three games.
The Wolfpack (4-0) will play Kent State Friday at TicketReturn.com Field, home to the minor-league Myrtle Beach Pelicans, before taking on Michigan State Saturday and Coastal Carolina Sunday, with both of those games coming at Coastal’s Springs Brooks Stadium in Conway.
The Pack’s offense has been red-hot to start the season, with NC State scoring nearly 10 runs per game through four contests. Senior first baseman Evan Edwards has led the charge, as he has clubbed two home runs and eight RBIs already this year. Edwards’ early season on-base plus slugging percentage is a very stellar 1.365.
Junior shortstop Will Wilson also has two homers so far. Another early standout for NC State has been freshman infielder Vojtech Mensik, who has started two games and is hitting 5 for 11. Three of those five hits for the product of the Czech Republic have gone for extra bases, as Mensik has two doubles and one triple.
On the mound, the Wolfpack started junior Jason Parker, sophomore Canaan Silver and sophomore Nick Swiney for the opening series, with Parker having the strongest outing. Parker allowed just one run over five innings.
The starting rotation this weekend could be very different for NC State this weekend, as the Wolfpack has a lot of talent on the mound, and head coach Elliott Avent will likely use the first months of the season to try and find the right group of starters.
One relief pitcher that stood out for the Pack in its opening week was redshirt sophomore Dalton Feeney, who missed all of last season with an elbow injury. Feeney has made two appearances so far this year, and has yet to allow a hit over 2.1 innings of work.
It will be a unique weekend for the Wolfpack, facing three different opponents rather than just one. Here’s what to expect from each of the three teams:
Kent State
The Golden Flashes (0-3) had a very strong 2018 campaign, finishing 40-18 with a MAC title. Kent State went to the Lubbock, Texas regional of the NCAA Tournament as a three seed, going 1-2 with both losses coming to Louisville.
In their opening weekend of this season, the Golden Flashes were swept on the road by a perennially good Dallas Baptist team. Lefty Connor Wollersheim pitched the Friday game for Kent State last weekend and had a decent outing. Despite walking four, Wollersheim allowed no earned runs over five innings to go along with six punchouts. If Wollersheim gets the ball again on Friday, he’ll be a tough draw for the Pack.
At the plate, Collin Mathews and Michael Turner led the way. Mathews went 2 for 5 with the team’s only home run, while Turner finished the weekend 3 for 8 with three runs scored.
Kent State struggled to produce offensively all weekend against Dallas Baptist, and it won’t get easier against a good NC State pitching staff.
Michigan State
The worst of the three teams NC State will face this weekend, the Spartans (1-2) started their season off with a series loss on the road against New Orleans. Last season, Michigan State went just 20-32 and failed to make the NCAA Tournament.
Righty Mike Mokma got the Saturday start and the loss against New Orleans, tossing five innings while allowing three runs. As a staff, Michigan State posted an ugly 5.04 ERA in its opening weekend of play.
At the plate, Royce Ando stood out for the Spartans in week one. He went 5 for 11, posted an OPS of 1.500 and hit one of three Michigan State home runs. The Spartans offense started the series in New Orleans with an eight-run outburst, but plated just one and four runs in the next two games, respectively.
Coastal Carolina
The Chanticleers have turned themselves into a baseball powerhouse over the past few years and are off to a 4-0 start in 2019. Coastal didn’t play a traditional series to start the season, but has already beaten a couple good teams. The Chanticleers have wins over VCU, Maryland, Campbell and UNC-Wilmington to kick off the season.
Coastal, which hosted an NCAA regional last season, brings an incredibly potent offensive attack to the field. The Chanticleers are putting 9.5 runs per game so far this year, and are allowing under five per game.
Coastal has hit four home runs in as many games this season, and has an outstanding team OPS of .967. First baseman Zach Biermann has a team-leading seven hits and six RBIs, and has one home run.
On the mound, lefty freshman Garrett McDaniels started on Sunday last week and didn’t allow a run over four innings of work. As a staff, the Chanticleers have a 3.75 ERA and are allowing opponents to hit .256.
NC State will have a tough time slowing Coastal’s offense, but has the opportunity for a very strong out-of-conference resume builder early in the season. The Wolfpack faithful will want to forget about the last time the two schools met, when Coastal scored four runs in the ninth inning of the final game of the 2016 Raleigh regional en route to a national championship.
Friday’s game against Kent State will start at 2 p.m., Saturday’s game against Michigan State will be at 11 a.m. and Sunday’s finale against Coastal will begin at 3 p.m.
