North Carolina State University Athletics
NC State
23-6, 0
Clemson
18-6, 0
NC State Baseball Thumps Clemson, 12-2
3/29/2003 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 29, 2003
KINSTON, N.C. - Jeremy Dutton hit a grand-slam home run and drove in six runs, and Vern Sterry came within an out of a complete game to lead 16th-ranked NC State to a 12-2 win over No. 10 Clemson in the first game of a doubleheader Saturday at Grainger Stadium. With the win, NC State takes the first two games of the three-game series with the Tigers and improves to 23-6 overall and 4-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Clemson falls to 18-6 overall and 0-2 in the ACC.
Sterry (7-0) allowed two runs, one of them earned, on six hits in 8-2/3 innings. He walked four and struck out 10. Sterry reached double figures in strikeouts for the fifth time this season. Clemson starter Jason Berken (3-1) took the loss after allowing five runs, four of them earned, on nine hits in 4-1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out two.
Timely hitting by the Wolfpack and some sloppy Clemson defense led to three runs for the Pack in the bottom of the first inning. Marc Maynor led off with an infield single, went to second on an errant pickoff throw by Berken, and took third on a passed ball. Jeremy Dutton hit a fly ball to left that Roberto Valiente dropped for a two-base error. Maynor scored on the play, and after Joe Gaetti flied to right, Dutton scored on Colt Morton's opposite-field double to the right-field corner. Justin Riley walked, and David Hicks singled past Brad McCann at third base to drive in Morton and give NC State a 3-0 lead.
The Pack mounted a two-out rally in the bottom of the fourth. Dustin Murphy, Maynor and Dutton had consecutive singlea to right field, with Dutton's driving in Murphy to give the Wolfpack a 4-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Morton led off with a walk and was forced at second on Justin Riley's grounder to third. David Hicks to move Riley to second, and Chad Orvella's single to right drove him home with NC State's fifth run of the afternoon.
The Tigers got on the board in the top of the sixth, but not without some dispute. With one away, Ryan Hub hit a long drive down the left-field line. The drive appeared to be comfortably foul, but was ruled a home run by the third-base umpire, cutting the Wolfpack lead to 5-1.
The Wolfpack put the game away with a five-run seventh. Riley and Orvella walked, and Matt Camp singled to left to load the bases with one out. Murphy drove in one run with a squeeze bunt, and Maynor walked to load the bases again. Dutton followed with a grand-slam homer to make it 10-1, Wolfpack.
NC State added two more in the bottom of the eighth. Morton led off with a single up the middle and Matt Long pinch-ran. With one away, Hicks singled to right to put runners on first and second. Orvella doubled to drive in one run, and Matt Camp drove in the second run on a groundout.
Clemson got one last run, unearned, in the top of the ninth. Jeff Hourigan reached on an error, went to second on a walk, took third on Herman Dimmink's single to right, and scored on a walk to Hub.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Sterry, Vern (7-0)
L: Jason Berken (3-1)
Batting:
2B: Ryan Hub 1
HR: Ryan Hub 1
RBI: Ryan Hub 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Ryan Hub 1 ; Jeff Hourigan 1
Batting:
2B: Morton, Colt 1 ; Orvella, Chad 1
HR: Dutton, Jeremy 1
RBI: Dutton, Jeremy 6 ; Morton, Colt 1 ; Hicks, David 1 ; Orvella, Chad 2 ; Camp, Matt 1 ; Murphy, Dustin 1
SH: Hicks, David 1 ; Murphy, Dustin 1
SF: Dutton, Jeremy 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Maynor, Marc 2 ; Dutton, Jeremy 2 ; Morton, Colt 1 ; Long , Matt 1 ; Riley, Justin 2 ; Hicks, David 1 ; Orvella, Chad 1 ; Camp, Matt 1 ; Murphy, Dustin 1
