Sterry Shuts Down Virginia, 12-1

Saturday, March 27

Raleigh, N.C.

2:00 PM

NC State

16-8, 0

Virginia

20-6, 0

Virginia

NC State

3/27/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

March 27, 2004

Final Stats

RALEIGH, N.C. - A reshuffled lineup paid immediate dividends for NC State, and Vern Sterry pitched like the All-American he is as the Wolfpack defeated Virginia 12-1 Saturday at Doak Field. The win by the Pack evened the series at a game apiece, snapped a four-game losing streak, and raised NC State to 16-8 overall and 2-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Virginia dropped to 20-6 overall and 5-3 in the ACC.

Sterry (4-1), who snapped three of NC State's six losing streaks a year ago, was outstanding in stopping this four-game slide. He pitched seven shutout innings, allowing three hits, walking one and striking out six. He stranded a pair of runners in scoring position in the first innng by striking out Joe Koshansky and Matt Dunn, Virginia's four and five hitters, and allowed just one runner past first base the rest of the afternoon. He retired 13 of the last 14 men he faced, and 18 of the last 20.

Virginia starter Matt Avery (3-1) was erratic and unfortunate, and he did not pitch as well as his line may have indicated. He worked three innings and while five of the six runs he allowed were unearned, he made significant contributions to the Wolfpack cause. In addition to giving up four hits, he walked one, hit two batters, and unloaded two wild pitches that led directly to a run. He did not record a strikeout.

The Wolfpack's revamped lineup, with six players either in new positions in the field or new to the lineup, went to work with a big inning in the bottom of the first, batting around and scoring four runs. Matt Camp led off and walked. Lee Mezistrano hit a potential double-play grounder to shortstop, but Mark Reynolds' throw to second was wide of the bag and into right field, allowing the runners to advance to second and third with none out. David Hicks got Camp home with a sacrifice fly to left, and Bryan Kinneberg made it 2-0 with a single to right that scored Mezistrano. Eric Taylor followed with his first collegiate home run, a towering shot to left field that pushed the lead to 4-0.

Jason St. Julien led off the bottom of the third with a line single up the middle, went to second on a sacrifice by Kinneberg, took third and then scored on wild pitches from Avery. With two down, Marc Maynor belted a shot off the wall in right-center, steamed around second base for a triple, and scored when right fielder Matt Street kicked the ball trying to pick it up for the relay back to the infield. That gave gave Sterry and the Wolfpack a 6-0 lead. St. Julien made it 7-0 with a one-out solo homer to left in the bottom of the fifth.

The Wolfpack put the icing on the cake in the bottom of the sixth. Maynor led off with an infield single, and Caleb Mangum and Tim Holt both beat out sacrifice attempts for base hits that loaded the bases with none out. Camp hit a Baltimore-chop single to left to drive in a run, and Mezistrano belted his first collegiate home run, a grand-slam to right to make it 12-0, Wolfpack.

Virgina got on the board in the top of the eighth. Tim Henry hit Sam Walls' first pitch of the game into right-center for a triple, then scored on a groundout by Tom Hagan.

The series will conclude on Sunday, with the first pitch set for 2 p.m. The game will be broadcast on WKNC-FM (88.1), and will be available on via the Yahoo subscription service on gopack.com. Live in-game stats will be available on gopack.com throgh the Gametracker.