David Tracey
Sophomore pitcher Reid Johnston delivers a pitch against Campbell on Friday, May 31, 2019 at Clark-LeClair Stadium in Greenville. Johnston pitched four innings, striking out one while giving up five unearned runs on four hits and three walks. The Wolfpack lost 5-4.
While the professional baseball season may be ending, this is the first week of fall ball for the NC State baseball team. The Wolfpack has two fall scrimmages in the upcoming weeks; this Sunday, Sept. 29 the team plays at home against South Carolina and Oct. 6 it will be playing at UNC-Wilmington.
Last season, the Wolfpack went 42-19, its second straight season with 40-plus wins under head coach Elliott Avent. With a strong regular season, the Pack was consistently ranked in the top 25 in national polls but wasn’t able to transfer that magic to the ACC Championship or the NCAA Championship.
While its ACC championship started with a narrow 6-5 win against Wake Forest, the Pack wasn’t able to beat Florida State in pool play or No. 6 Georgia Tech in the semifinals. The team had about the same luck in the NCAA regionals with losses to both Campbell and East Carolina.
To combat this problem of consistency, NC State baseball announced last month the arrival of a new assistant coach, Joey Holcomb. Holcomb was formerly an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at UNC-Greensboro. He brings plenty of experience from a solid program and an offense which has recently broken records in batting average, hits and RBIs, among others.
The Pack starts off its fall scrimmages at Doak Field against South Carolina this Sunday, Sept. 29. Last year, the Gamecocks were 28-28 and lost in the first round of the SEC Tournament against No. 16 LSU. They played the Wolfpack April 2, 2019 at BB&T Ballpark in Charlotte. It was a strong effort all game by both teams, but the Gamecocks were able to pull away at the end thanks to a walk-off home run by Jacob Olson to win 10-8.
Then, the Wolfpack will travel to Wilmington to take on UNC-W Oct. 6. The Seahawks finished their season 32-31 with an automatic NCAA Championship bid thanks to their CAA Championship win. The Wolfpack and Seahawks matched up twice last season, and NC State was victorious both times. The Pack won 14-7 at Wilmington April 16, 2019 and returned home April 30 for an 11-3 win.
These two games will be very important to determine what needs to be worked on before the start of the spring season. Admission is free for anyone who wants to come out and support the Wolfpack.