It was the best of times and it was the worst of times for NC State softball as it split a doubleheader with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Saturday, March 6 at Dail Softball Stadium, winning the first game 8-7 and losing the second one 12-10.
Both ends of the doubleheader featured plenty of late-game drama as redshirt junior outfielder Sam Russ walked off the first one, and the second one centered around a controversial strike zone.
The Wolfpack (10-3, 6-3 ACC) sent out redshirt freshman right-handed pitcher Sam Gress for the first game, but for her it was an outing to forget. The Yellow Jackets (6-12, 1-8 ACC) put up four runs in the top of the first inning before Gress could record a single out.Head coach Jennifer Patrick-Swift made a very early call to the bullpen for freshman left-handed pitcher Estelle Czech.
The game was far from over as the Pack clawed its way back into the game. By the end of the third, the score was tied at four runs apiece.The Yellow Jackets wasted no time in retaking the lead, however, as Czech surrendered one run in the fourth inning followed by a two-run homer by Georgia Tech left fielder Cameron Stanford in the fifth to give GT a two-run lead.
“We’re confident in our offense and we know that we can come back from any deficit,” Russ said. “It wasn’t too big of a blow [with Georgia Tech] getting a couple of runs in the first inning, because we knew that with the talent of all of our hitters, we’d be able to come back.”
Once Czech gave up a single after the Stanford home run, Patrick-Swift once again made a pitching change as redshirt senior right-handed pitcher Abby Trahan came in and remained in the pitcher’s circle for the rest of the game for NC State.
Redshirt junior first baseman Randi Farricker was instrumental in the Wolfpack’s comeback in the first game, knocking an RBI double in the bottom of the fifth and crushing a solo homer to lead off the bottom of the seventh. Farricker’s dinger in the final inning pulled the Pack within one run with three outs to go.
“Getting up there and swinging for the fence any time you can, obviously with some runners on base, when you hit the long ball you’re going to start adding to your total in bunches,” Russ said. “That seemed to help us.”
Redshirt junior catcher Sam Sack got on base after being hit by the first pitch of her at bat. Freshman utility player Laine Marak promptly pinch ran for Sack and would eventually touch home plate for the tying run.
After redshirt sophomore designated player April Visser advanced Marak to second on a sacrifice bunt, redshirt senior outfielder Brigette Nordberg pinch hit for freshman second baseman Kaylee Lambrecht with one out and the game-tying run in scoring position.
Nordberg sent a looping fly ball down into shallow right that was caught by Georgia Tech right fielder Crosby Huckabay. As Marak tagged up to third, Huckabay’s throw sailed a smidge too high and trickled behind third base, allowing Marak to scramble home and beat the ensuing throw to even the score at 7-7.
The Wolfpack comeback came to fruition in the next at-bat, securing an 8-7 victory. The 0-1 pitch to Russ was gone as soon as it left her bat, soaring well over Huckabay’s head for a walk-off bomb.
“I knew that I was going to come in and look for a pitch I could end the game with,” Russ said. “For me, that’s an inside pitch so I back up off the plate a little. I took the first outside pitch [Georgia Tech left-handed pitcher Madison McPherson] threw me, and then she ended up coming in for the second pitch so I was able to turn on it.”
Another similarity between the two games was that NC State had to claw back from another early deficit in the latter half of the doubleheader as well. The Yellow Jackets put up two runs against freshman right-handed pitcher Brooklyn Lucero in the first, but the Wolfpack wasted no time eating away at that lead either, scoring three runs of its own in the bottom half of the frame.
The two programs continued to trade punches up to the fourth inning when NC State seemed to land the knockout blow. The Wolfpack had already scored two runs in the inning via back-to-back RBI singles from Russ and redshirt senior outfielder Tatyana Forbes when redshirt senior outfielder Angie Rizzi tattooed the first pitch she saw over the center field wall for a three-run homer, putting the Pack up 10-6.
“[Rizzi’s] a baller,” Patrick-Swift said. “She’s the heart and soul in that three-spot as far as you give her a pitch and she takes her swing. When she’s able to get her swing off she’s going to hit it a long way. We see her hit balls 300 feet every single day. When she’s in the box, it’s just a matter of whether the pitcher throws one where she likes, and she takes her hack then it’s gonna go.”
The score remained 10-6 heading into the seventh inning in large part due to redshirt sophomore right-handed pitcher Sydney Nester, who came into the game to relieve Lucero in the second. Nester had only allowed two earned runs before that final inning, but that total swiftly ballooned thanks to some contestable calls by the home plate umpire.
Nester allowed a single and struck out one before the controversy escalated, but an audibly upset Patrick-Swift received a warning from the ump after a seemingly down-the-middle 3-0 pitch from Nester was called ball four.
“We did a good job of controlling the things that we could control,” Patrick-Swift said. “Unfortunately, the things that were out of our control didn’t go in a way that we agreed with. The situation was tough, because we had what we know were several strikeouts. You can get by one of those, but when that keeps happening over and over again, that’s tough for a pitcher’s psyche. I thought Nester did a heck of a job trying to get out there, throw her pitches and do her thing. At the end of the day, the things that we couldn’t control came back.”
Nester then gave up a single to load the bases but struck out the next batter to bring the Wolfpack one out away from sealing the deal. Georgia Tech designated player Breanna Roper had other plans, however, and sent a frozen rope into left-center field that found its way to the wall, bringing the Yellow Jackets within two on a two-RBI double. Nester worked the count full on the next batter, but continued to not get the calls she wanted and surrendered another walk to load the bases.
The situation came to a head when GT first baseman Tricia Awald clocked the payoff pitch for a no-doubt grand slam over the right field fence. This prompted a now irate Patrick-Swift to storm out of the dugout and start a shouting match with the home plate umpire. She was ejected from the game and was escorted from the field by the umps.
“It was obviously a little frustrating, but it was things that were out of our control,” Russ said. “We wanted to rally back, score some runs and not let that energy take us into the end of the game as well as our game tomorrow.”
Despite the drama that had just unfolded, there was still half an inning of softball left to be played after Nester got Huckabay to strike out to end the top of the seventh. Sack did manage a stand-up double with one out, bringing the tying run to the plate, but Nordberg and then redshirt junior outfielder Carson Shaner both struck out to finalize the result of a 12-10 Georgia Tech victory.
The Wolfpack will complete its home series against the Yellow Jackets on Sunday, March 7 at 12 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
