NC State
9-9, 0
Virginia Tech
6-12, 0
NC State Softball Rallies to Defeat Virginia Tech in Series Finale
3/6/2016 4:03:00 PM | Softball
Wolfpack plates seven runs in its final two at-bats
RALEIGH, N.C. – The NC State softball team rallied to score five runs in the fifth inning and two runs in the sixth to earn a 7-5 come-from-behind win against Virginia Tech Sunday afternoon at Dail Stadium.
The Wolfpack wins the series with the victory, after the teams split a pair of games yesterday. NC State improves to 9-9 on the year and 2-1 in ACC play, while Virginia Tech falls to 6-12 and 1-2 in conference action.
NC State has now won its ACC-opening series for the third consecutive season, as the Wolfpack opened the 2015 conference season with a sweep of Notre Dame and started league play in 2014 with a sweep against Virginia.
Rychcik's Review
Opening statement…
"I'm proud of how we battled today to hang in there and get the win to clinch the series," said head coach Shawn Rychcik. "We took a pretty big hit from Virginia Tech getting down 5-0 and we had to check ourselves and make sure we weren't going to lie down.
"We got a couple big hits and put together a couple good at-bats before Molly [Hutchison] hit the home run. She had a great weekend, hitting the ball well all weekend and that's good to see."
On the Wolfpack's pitching…
"I thought Brittany [Nimmo] and Courtney [Mirabella] did a really good job. Sunday's always a tough day because you've seen all the pitching and the hitters have faced you and we got a really good effort from both of them."
Quick Hits
- Trailing 5-0 heading into the bottom of the fifth, the NC State bats came alive with five runs and three hits in the inning.
- Hanna Sommer started the frame with a single to the left side and Cheyenne Balzer followed with a walk.
- Jessica Moore was called on to pinch-hit for NC State and she delivered a single to right field, a nice present for the freshman on her birthday.
- With the bases loaded, Lana Van Dyken drew a walk to plate Balzer from third base and a sacrifice fly by Tyler Ross helped the Pack trim the Tech lead to 5-2.
- Molly Hutchison stepped to the plate next and clubbed a three-run homer to knot the score at five apiece. It was her third round-tripper of the season.
- Courtney Mirabella struck out the side in the top of the sixth to keep the momentum on the Wolfpack's side.
- In the bottom of the inning, Maggie Hawkins led off with her fifth home run of the season to right center, as NC State took its first lead of the day at 6-5.
- The Pack plated the second run of the frame after Hannah Yeager reached on an error to score Molly Martin from third base and push the NC State lead to 7-5.
- Mirabella retired the first two batters in the seventh on flyouts and then struck out the last batter swinging to seal the win.
Game in 5 - NC State Softball vs. Virginia Tech Hokies (March 6th, 2016) from Wolfpack Sports Television on Vimeo.
Inside the Box Score
- Hutchison led the Wolfpack at the plate with a perfect 3-for-3 performance, highlighted by a home run and three RBI.
- Sommer had a pair of singles in the contest, while Hawkins and Moore each had one hit.
In the Pitcher's Circle
- Freshman Brittany Nimmo started in the circle for NC State and pitched well, allowing just one earned run on four hits in four innings pitched.
- Mirabella relieved her in the fifth and tossed the final three innings to earn the win and push her record to 6-4 on the year. She struck out six batters, walked two and allowed one hit.
Quoting the Players
Maggie Hawkins, Sr., 3B
On hitting the go-ahead home run in the sixth…
"It felt great. I was thinking 'Thank God' in my head because it was a struggle early in the game. Coming back was awesome by our team and it was nice to be able to put a cherry on top.
"I was looking for something low and away and that's what she gave me and I put a good swing on it."
Molly Hutchison, Jr., RF
On hitting the game-tying home run in the fifth…
"It felt great to get us back in the game. I was feeling really confident because I was hitting pretty well off of her [VT's Maggie Tyler], so I wanted to get something up in the zone that I could drive and it happened for me."
Courtney Mirabella, Jr., P
On her outing today…
"I've been working really hard to get better everyday and I think today was another positive step forward. I wasn't thinking as much today, I just trusted my stuff and pitched how I know how to pitch."
On what the win does for the team rallying from a five-run deficit…
"I think it's awesome because we showed that we can fight back. We don't give up on each other and moving forward this gives us confidence to know that we can overcome an early deficit."
Game Notes
- After the victory, NC State leads the all-time series against Virginia Tech, 20-15.
- Ross saw her six-game hitting streak come to a close in the contest, but Sommer extended her reached base safely streak to eight games.
On Deck
NC State returns to action this weekend when it hosts the NC State DoubleTree RDU Challenge. The Wolfpack opens play in the challenge against Delaware State at 2:30 p.m. Friday.
#STATEment
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Mirabella, Courtney (6-4)
L: Maggie Tyler (4-7)
Batting:
2B: Chelsea Whitcomb 1 ; Emma Strouth 1
RBI: Olivia Lattin 1 ; Kelsey Mericka 1
SH: Katey Smith 1 ; Kinsey Johnson 1
SF: Kelsey Mericka 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Olivia Lattin 1 ; Vanessa Gonzalez 1 ; Katey Smith 1 ; Chelsea Whitcomb 1 ; Ashley Kowalski 1
HBP: Caitlyn Nolan 1
Batting:
HR: Hutchison, Molly 1 ; Hawkins, Maggie 1
RBI: Van Dyken, Lana 1 ; Ross, Tyler 1 ; Hutchison, Molly 3 ; Hawkins, Maggie 1
SH: Balzer, Cheyenne 1
SF: Ross, Tyler 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Van Dyken, Lana 1 ; Hutchison, Molly 1 ; Hawkins, Maggie 1 ; Martin, Molly 1 ; Balzer, Cheyenne 1 ; Moore, Jessica 1 ; Prickett, Macauley 1
SB: Prickett, Macauley 1
