North Carolina State University Athletics
Pack Softball Faces Florida State in Pivotal ACC Series
4/14/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 13, 2006
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ACC Series With Seminoles Awaits Wolfpack
NC State (36-16, 8-4 ACC) travels to Tallahassee, Fla. to square off against Florida State (31-19, 6-5 ACC) in a pivotal ACC matchup. Both teams have won three of its last five ACC games coming into the series, with the televised doubleheader beginning at noon on Saturday, April 15. The series third and final game is slated for a 1 p.m. start on Sunday, April 16. Sun Sports will air the doubleheader, and it is Channel 632 on Direct TV and Channel 422 on Dish Network.
Look Closer ...
Florida State • Apr. 15 (DH - 12 & 2 p.m.)
• Apr. 16 (1 p.m.)
The two teams will be televised on SUN Sports for Saturday's doubleheader, NC State's first appearance on TV ... Florida State leads the series 3-1, with NC State winning the last meeting, 2-1 on 3/7/05 in Raleigh, N.C. ... The Seminoles are 27-11 at home this season, while NC State is 5-3 on the road ... The series marks the first ACC road contests for the Wolfpack this season and the Seminoles are 5-4 at home in ACC contests ... NC State is 4-8 on the road in ACC games all-time and 0-2 in Tallahassee, Fla.
Pack Second In ACC After Series Win Over Georgia Tech
NC State moved into sole possession of second in the ACC with a series win over Georgia Tech this past weekend at Walnut Creek. The Wolfpack pounded out nine runs on 10 hits in the series opener for a easy 9-1 win in six innings and split in Sunday's doubleheader. The Jackets won the first game, 4-3, as NC State rallied from a 4-1 deficit to trim it to one run in the seventh before falling. Down 3-2 in the fifth in the final game, Jen Chamberlin hit a solo shot to tie it in the fifth and the offense erupted for four more runs in the sixth for the 7-3 win.
The team is 8-4 in conference, besting last season's 7-7 mark for most wins in an ACC season, to hold second place behind 9-3 North Carolina. The two rivals meet on the final weekend of the regular season for a three game series, Apr. 27-28.
Shaina Ervin Dominating ACC Teams
Shaina Ervin is one of four Wolfpack players to be hitting over .300 against ACC teams - and that isn't even the impressive stat! Ervin has posted a perfect 6-0 record against ACC foes, second in the conference, and has a 1.17 ERA against those teams, the third best mark in the league.
NC State Is ACC's Top Defense
As a team, NC State leads the ACC in defense in conference games. In its 12 ACC contests, the Wolfpack has committed just seven errors for a .981 fielding percentage and has turned five double plays, third in the conference. The catchers have been doing their job as well behind the plate, allowing only three steals in nine attempts, the best mark in the league.
In all games this season, NC State is second behind Maryland with a .970 fielding percentage, a mark which would rank as a school record if the season ended today.
Smith Spiking In ACC
Shanna Smith's stock has been spiking. The sophomore shortstop has hit .324 in 2006 league play after hitting a team best .341 in 14 games last season against ACC opponents. Her nine RBIs in ACC games ties for seventh in the ACC and she is fifth in triples, fourth in home runs, second in runs scored, seventh in walks, tenth in on base percentage and eighth in slugging percentage.
Overall in the ACC, Smith ranks in three offensive categories, tied for tops on the team. She is third in stolen bases with .44 per game, and her 20 steals tie for first. Her three triples is the third most, and Smith ranks seventh in triples per game and fifth in runs scored per game.
Miranda Ervin Pounding Pitchers
The junior catcher has been pounding pitchers lately, hitting a team best .500 (9-of-18) while riding a six-game hitting streak. She has nine RBIs, tops on the team, two doubles (tied for first) and hit a three-run home run in the rout of Georgia Tech in Saturday's 9-1 win during the stretch. Against Charlotte in the first game of a doubleheader, she drove in four runs with a pair of RBI singles.
Her numbers overall in the ACC are quite impressive, as she ranks eighth in home runs (.16 per game with a career-high tying seven on the season), fifth in RBIs (.79 per game, a career-high 38 RBIs) and ninth in slugging percentage at .561 (a mark that currently ranks second in school history for a single season).
Holding Leads
The 2006 Wolfpack squad is especially good at holding leads, and is 29-3 when scoring first this season. The Wolfpack is 16-2 when holding the lead after the first stanza, 19-1 after two, 25-2 after three and lost for the first time when leading after four innings against Charlotte. NC State is 25-0 when leading after five innings and 27-0 when up after six.
On the flip side, NC State is 3-7 when trailing after three, 4-10 after four, 3-11 after five and a paltry 1-13 when trailing after six innings.
When the team has scored three or more runs it has posted a record of 31-3 this season and is 29-6 when holding its opponent to two or fewer runs.
Shutting The Door
The pitching staff has done its job this season, shutting out 14 opponents, a mark that ranks second all-time at NC State. The team notched 10 in 2004 and a school-record 16 last year.
On the other side of the spectrum, the Wolfpack has been shut out nine times in its 16 losses and has scored just 15 runs in its losses this season.
Chamberlin Packs a Powerful Punch
Junior slugger Jen Chamberlin has 32 career home runs, fifth all-time in the ACC and second among active players in the league. The junior is just 14 dingers away from the ACC record of 46.
Chamberlin's nine home runs this season rank second in the league and are first on the team, and her six home runs against ACC teams is first in the conference.
She currently leads the team in hits (13), average (.342), homers (6), RBIs (10) and slugging percentage (.868) in league contests.
Abbie Sims in ACC & NCAA Record Books
Abbie Sims has posted some impressive numbers so far in her career, but her strikeout numbers could be considered staggering. Her 733 career strikeouts rank eighth all-time in the ACC and she needs 18 more to move into seventh.
Even more impressive is her standing in the NCAA record books. Sims has fanned an average of 9.55 batters per seven innings pitched (a complete game in softball), a mark that ranks 17th all-time in NCAA history. She is currently fifth among active pitchers, trailing only four all-Americans - Cat Osterman (Texas), Monica Abbott (Tenn.); Alicia Hollowell (Arizona); and Jennie Ritter (Mich.).
Sims is second all-time among ACC pitchers on the list behind former Georgia Tech All-American, Jessica Sallinger, the ACC career leader in total strikeouts (1,398).
Shanna Smith Steals
Shortstop Shanna Smith is proving to be quite the thief. She is the school record holder in career steals (33) and percentage (.868) - and she is only in her sophomore year.
Smith stole nine bases in 10 attempts in 2005, setting the single season Wolfpack record for steals and stolen base percentage (.900). She is now 24-28 this season, smashing her total from last season through 52 games.
Smith's 24 steals in 2006 tie for first in the conference and her .46 steals per game is third overall.
Smith uses her speed when she puts the ball in play as well, racking of three triples (third in the ACC and she ranks ninth in triples per game with .06), seven doubles (first on the team) and scoring the fifth most runs and ranking seventh at .76 runs per game in the conference.
Shaina Ervin Named ACC Player of the Week (4/3/06)
After an outstanding week for junior pitcher Shaina Ervin, she was honored with her first ever ACC Player of the Week selection. Ervin went 3-0 during the week with two wins over Maryland and a win over Kent State. She posted two shutouts and a 0.37 ERA, striking out 17 while walking just two batters. Despite allowing a home run in the top of the seventh of game one to Maryland, her first run allowed in 26 straight innings pitched, Ervin was almost unhittable as her .143 opponents batting average suggests. She tossed a one-hit shutout (infield single) against Kent State on 3/28 and had won eight straight decisions.
Navas' 600, 400, 100
Another coaching milestone for Lisa Navas. NC State and Navas have won 100 games in the programs first three seasons after a sweep of East Carolina on 3/22/06. The Wolfpack head coach has led a team in 600 career games after the win against Minnesota on Feb. 12 in Auburn, Ala. She won her 400th game last season at Virginia Tech, and currently holds a career record of 444-202-1 (.687).
The Road Warriors
If you want to see Wolfpack softball in action this season at home, don't blink! Of the 36 days that NC State plays at least one game, only ten of those have been at home.
NC State is in the midst of a 13-game road trip to close out the regular season. The team split with Charlotte in the Queen City on Wed., Apr. 12 and has 11 more games before the ACC Tournament on May 11-14.
When the season opened on Feb. 10-12 in Auburn, Ala., NC State had only one home date before the Boston College series on Mar. 18. The Wolfpack then played 14-of-18 overall in Raleigh and finish the season on the road the last month for the final 13 games.
Gelbard Doubles Up
Heather Gelbard is a professional hitter, but she excels in the classroom as well. The junior has started 174 games (most on the team) and has played in 175, posting the most career hits (177) and doubles (30) and ranking second in batting average (.308) on the team.
In the classroom Gelbard is equally talented. She became the first All-American in softball at NC State as a third-team ESPN The Magazine CoSida Academic All-American. In addition, Gelbard was named to the ACC Honor Roll in back-to-back seasons. For her play on the field, Gelbard was honored as a second team all-ACC pick in 2005.
NCAA Bound?
NC State missed out on the NCAA Championships last season, despite an impressive showing against postseason bound clubs. The Wolfpack posted a 13-11 mark against teams that eventually made it to the postseason, including a 7-6 mark against ACC teams that made the tournament.
The 2006 Wolfpack softball team upped the toughness of this season's schedule as it aims for its first NCAA appearance. The 2006 schedule features games against 12 teams that made the NCAA Championships last season, including Women's College World Series participants No. 1/1 Arizona and No. 3/3 Tennessee.
NC State has two wins against top-25 teams, beating No. 23 Virginia Tech and No. 18 Missouri. Overall, the Wolfpack has faced five ranked teams, posting a 2-3 mark.
Navas in NCAA Record Book
Lisa Navas has been a standout leader over her 11 years as a head coach, and her position in the NCAA record books backs this claim heading into the season. For coaches with fewer than five years at the Division 1 level, Navas ranks first in terms of winning percentage with a .687 mark. She ranks second among coaches who meet that same criteria over a ten-year period. If her winning percentage holds over the next two seasons at the Division 1 level, Navas could rank somewhere in the top-20 for active coaches.
Michelle Green Joins The Staff
Standout pitchers are common on the NC State team, with Abbie Sims, Shaina Ervin, Brooke Isley and Megan Dalthorp all combining to solidify the staff the past two seasons. Now Michelle Green joins the team as an assistant and pitching coach after a four-year career at Georgia that included two All-America seasons.
Her career at Georgia ended with Green as the greatest pitcher in Bulldog history. She is the all-time school leader in wins (104), ERA (1.30), shutouts (47.5) and strikeouts (1,070). She posted a 39-8 record and 1.10 ERA in 2003, striking out 407 batters en route to her first All-America selection. As a senior in 2005, Green sported a 27-4 mark and 1.35 ERA, fanning 272 batters in 187 innings pitched.
Green is a recent graduate of the University of Georgia, receiving a B.S. in sport studies with an emphasis in business. She will be pursuing a Masters Degree at State in Sports Management.
Back-to-Back-to-Back Bombs
Maybe we should have seen it coming, only no one could remember ever seeing such a feat before. The team hit back-to-back-to-back dingers against Tennessee Tech Saturday night at the Worth Wildcat. After losing a tough game to 3/3Arizona, NC State needed to rebound against Tech, and it's safe to say that happened in a big way.
Jen Chamberlin, Jennifer Patterson and Shaina Ervin each hit home runs for the historic program first.
Before this game, NC State had hit back-to-back home runs in three games; twice in 2004 (Shaina Ervin and Allison Cuculich, Caroline Blount and Heather Jedrey) and once in 2005 (Miranda Ervin and Allison Cuculich. Miranda Ervin and Abbie Sims hit back-to-back dingers against Georgia Tech on Apr. 8, 2006.
Everything Coming Up Fives
Four NC State players enjoyed the number five during the 2005 season, as Abbie Sims, Heather Gelbard, Jennifer Patterson and Miranda Ervin each had five RBIs in a game, a school record.
Gelbard was the first to pull it off, going 5-for-5 with a grand slam and five RBIs against Mississippi Valley State on Feb. 6.
Patterson followed, hitting a school record three doubles and collecting five RBIs in a 10-0 win over Rutgers on Feb. 20.
Not to be out done, Sims hit her own grand slam, at the time the second in school history, and drove in five runs in an 11-2 win over Delaware St. on Feb. 26.
Ervin was the most recent to get five RBIs, hitting a three-run blast in the first inning against Virginia Tech on Apr. 17 and a two-run home run in the fourth. She became the first player to have five RBIs in a game twice, collecting five in the first game of the UMass doubleheader on Apr. 20. after a three-run double and a two-run home run.
TMTM
