Averaging more than eight runs during the baseball team’s current four-game win streak, it’s no secret how N.C. State has been putting tallies in the win column as of late.
“One through nine, and about four or five guys off the bench, we feel like we can out-hit anybody, and I think other teams realize it,” coach Elliot Avent said. “I think our reputation precedes us, people talk about getting our hitters out.”
As Wake Forest comes to Raleigh this weekend, hitting will be imperative since the Demon Deacons pounded out a total of 32 runs while sweeping ACC foe Virginia Tech before dropping their last two games out of conference.
“They’re very hot right now, and winning breeds confidence — I’m sure they’re a very confident team,” Avent said. “They’re tied in the division with us, both a game back of FSU. It’s not late in the season, but you look up and see you’re one game out of first place in your division and it’s a great feeling, and Wake feels the same way we do.”
While the winning feeling is one State has become accustomed to the past few seasons, it has become a new feeling in Winston-Salem.
This season’s Demon Deacons baseball team is just four wins away from matching its total of all of last year in just over half the games played. Last year’s squad finished the season two games under .500 at 28-30, while it has already accumulated 24 wins this year to just eight losses.
The new found flair though does not bother State as it heads into the series.
“From what we hear, they’re a young, scrappy team, which we like to consider ourselves as well,” senior center fielder Matt Camp said. “I’d say we’ve got the better lineup, and hopefully the better pitching, and I’m pretty sure we do. As long as we play our game, I believe we’ll be successful.”
The pitchers believe that with the vaunted Wolfpack offense and with a spectacular defense behind them their ERAs are inconsequential.
“The offense gives us a nice little cushion most games so we just try to pitch relaxed and do everything we can to keep us in the game and let our hitters get a chance to win it,” redshirt sophomore Eryk McConnell said.
“We’ve got a heck of a defense, and one of my favorite things to do is throw it up there and watch [Jonathon Diaz] make a spectacular play, but that lineup also definitely makes a big difference in how we pitch.”
One of the biggest indicators for victory this year for State has been getting on the board first. The Wolfpack are 14-0 when scoring first this season.
“It seems lately we’ve only been scoring runs when we had to. We haven’t been scoring first, just waiting until late in the game when we’re behind to start scoring some runs, but I think we came around on that this weekend,” junior catcher Caleb Mangum said.
“That’s what we want to do this weekend, though. We want to jump on them early and keep adding on.”
