NC State's Sterry Shuts Out Maryland, 3-0

Saturday, April 10

College Park, Md.

1:00 PM

NC State

23-10, 0

Maryland

16-17, 0

NC State

Maryland

4/10/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball

Box Score

April 10, 2004

Final Stats

FREDERICK, Md. - Vern Sterry pitched a complete-game three-hit shutout Saturday, and Lee Mezistrano drove in a pair of runs as NC State defeated Maryland 3-0 in the first game of an Atlantic Coast Conference doubleheader at Harry Grove Stadium. The win, the Wolfpack's third in a row, lifted the Pack to 23-10 overall and 6-5 in the ACC. Maryland dropped to 16-17 overall and 2-9 in the ACC.

Sterry (5-1) walked one and struck out 11. He allowed just one baserunner to reach scoring position, and seemed to get stronger as the game went along. He retired the last five men he faced, 11 of the last 12, and 15 of the last 17. Maryland never had more than one baserunner in an inning. Maryland starter Kevin Hart (1-7) was the hard-luck loser, but pitched more than well enough to win. He allowed just two unearned runs on three hits in seven-plus innings. He walked one and struck out nine. But those two runs were more than Sterry needed.

With one down in the top of the third, Ryan Johnson reached on a throwing error by shortstop Dan Melvin, and Matt Camp was hit by a pitch. Jake Muyco grounded out to advance the runners to second and third, and Lee Mezistrano got both home with a bloop single to right-center.

NC State tacked on an insurance run in the top of the eighth. David Hicks hit an opposite-field one-out double to left field, and Dustin Knight crushed a two-out ground-rule double to straightaway center field to drive in Hicks and give Sterry and the Wolfpack a 3-0 lead.