North Carolina State University Athletics
Friday, February 8
Orlando, Fla.
6:00 PM
NC State
1-1
10
vs
6
UCF
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2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
NC State
1
1
1
0
0
4
3
10
18
2
Central Florida
5
0
0
0
0
1
0
6
8
1
Offense Explodes in Softball Win Over UCF, 10-6
2/8/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
ORLANDO, Fla. The NC State offense put on a display in a 10-6 victory over Central Florida on Friday, Feb. 8 in Orlando, Fla., at the UCF Softball Tournament. The win moves the Pack to 1-1 on the young season, while the Golden Knights fall to 1-1.
Shanna Smith tied a school record for hits in a game with five, and the entire team set a new record for total hits in a contest overall with 18. Prior to tonight’s showing, the team record for hits in a game was 17 on two occasions. Two-time All-ACC letterwinner Heather Gelbard had five hits for State against Mississippi Valley State on Feb. 6, 2005.
Smith’s onslaught marked the eighth time in school history that a Wolfpack player etched five or more RBIs in a game. The 2007 first team All-ACC performer also swiped a bag and scored three runs.
“We battled the whole game and made the plays we needed to down the stretch,” said Smith. “I was seeing the ball well and being patient at the plate. We had several players that delivered more than once. It was nice to see the bats come out and get some work done.”
The Pack offense, however, certainly did not end and begin with Smith. Allison Presnell went 4-for-5 with four RBIs, and both Claudia Cooper and Ashleigh Davis collected three hits.
Mendy McKenzie (1-0) got the decision in her first appearance in the red and white, while Ashleigh Cole (0-1) took the loss. McKenzie, who allowed five earned runs and four hits in a difficult first inning, settled down tremendously after she recorded her first three outs. She allowed just four hits and zero earned runs in her final five frames.
Smith set the tone for her memorable performance early on, belting the third pitch of the ballgame over the wall in near dead-center, and giving State an early advantage.
The Golden Knights answered Smith’s dinger with five runs of its own in the bottom half of the opening frame. Tiffany Lane walked and took second on a Marquita Council sac-bunt. Following an illegal pitch that sent Lane to third, Abby McClain nailed a double to deep-center, knotting the ballgame at 1-all.
Breanna Javier followed with a bloop single just beyond the infield dirt, and Hillary Barrow did the exact same thing, scoring McClain. The Golden Knights added an additional run following back-to-back walks, and Lindsay Dean unclogged the bases with a two-run single to the warning track in left.
The Pack got another run in the top of the second. Kristine Bechtholdt walked and moved to second on a Blair Harkey sac-bunt. Davis then recorded an infield single to short, putting runners on the corners. Smith followed a single into right, bringing Bechtholdt across the plate.
Cooper crushed a double to right-center to start the top of the third, and Krystal Hawkins took over on the base path. Presnell then brought Hawkins around for another run with a base hit up the middle. Lacey Holm followed with another single, which forced UCF to lift starter Lexi Gresham and place Cole in the circle.
Cole promptly retired the next three NCSU batters.
The tide began to turn in the top of the sixth when Smith got her fourth hit of the game on a one-out single, and Lauren Peters followed with a walk. Cooper then sent a blooper just over third to load the bases for Presnell, who abused a Cole pitch for a triple to deep center. Presnell scored herself when Ashley Van Ryn’s relay throw from the outfield sailed over home plate.
Harkey made one of her sensational trademark grabs to open the bottom of the sixth when Morgan Bullard belted a deep fly ball to center that sent her back peddling in a hurry. Lane then took first on a bunt, and McKenzie walked Council. McClain then flew out to left, but Smith bobbled a Javier grounder, allowing Lane to score. Barrow popped out to Cooper at third to end the inning.
The Pack added three more runs in its last at-bat. Harkey walked and Davis moved her along with a bunt single back to the bump. But Smith’s work wasn’t done. She followed with an absolute blast, her second homer of the night and fifth hit total, giving the Wolfpack a 10-6 cushion.
Linsday Campana took control of the ball for the Pack in the bottom of the seventh and struck out the side in dominating fashion.
State will return to the yard tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 9, with two more games. The Pack will face Illinois State at 1:30 p.m., before taking on Central Arkansas at 4 p.m.
Shanna Smith tied a school record for hits in a game with five, and the entire team set a new record for total hits in a contest overall with 18. Prior to tonight’s showing, the team record for hits in a game was 17 on two occasions. Two-time All-ACC letterwinner Heather Gelbard had five hits for State against Mississippi Valley State on Feb. 6, 2005.
Smith’s onslaught marked the eighth time in school history that a Wolfpack player etched five or more RBIs in a game. The 2007 first team All-ACC performer also swiped a bag and scored three runs.
“We battled the whole game and made the plays we needed to down the stretch,” said Smith. “I was seeing the ball well and being patient at the plate. We had several players that delivered more than once. It was nice to see the bats come out and get some work done.”
The Pack offense, however, certainly did not end and begin with Smith. Allison Presnell went 4-for-5 with four RBIs, and both Claudia Cooper and Ashleigh Davis collected three hits.
Mendy McKenzie (1-0) got the decision in her first appearance in the red and white, while Ashleigh Cole (0-1) took the loss. McKenzie, who allowed five earned runs and four hits in a difficult first inning, settled down tremendously after she recorded her first three outs. She allowed just four hits and zero earned runs in her final five frames.
Smith set the tone for her memorable performance early on, belting the third pitch of the ballgame over the wall in near dead-center, and giving State an early advantage.
The Golden Knights answered Smith’s dinger with five runs of its own in the bottom half of the opening frame. Tiffany Lane walked and took second on a Marquita Council sac-bunt. Following an illegal pitch that sent Lane to third, Abby McClain nailed a double to deep-center, knotting the ballgame at 1-all.
Breanna Javier followed with a bloop single just beyond the infield dirt, and Hillary Barrow did the exact same thing, scoring McClain. The Golden Knights added an additional run following back-to-back walks, and Lindsay Dean unclogged the bases with a two-run single to the warning track in left.
The Pack got another run in the top of the second. Kristine Bechtholdt walked and moved to second on a Blair Harkey sac-bunt. Davis then recorded an infield single to short, putting runners on the corners. Smith followed a single into right, bringing Bechtholdt across the plate.
Cooper crushed a double to right-center to start the top of the third, and Krystal Hawkins took over on the base path. Presnell then brought Hawkins around for another run with a base hit up the middle. Lacey Holm followed with another single, which forced UCF to lift starter Lexi Gresham and place Cole in the circle.
Cole promptly retired the next three NCSU batters.
The tide began to turn in the top of the sixth when Smith got her fourth hit of the game on a one-out single, and Lauren Peters followed with a walk. Cooper then sent a blooper just over third to load the bases for Presnell, who abused a Cole pitch for a triple to deep center. Presnell scored herself when Ashley Van Ryn’s relay throw from the outfield sailed over home plate.
Harkey made one of her sensational trademark grabs to open the bottom of the sixth when Morgan Bullard belted a deep fly ball to center that sent her back peddling in a hurry. Lane then took first on a bunt, and McKenzie walked Council. McClain then flew out to left, but Smith bobbled a Javier grounder, allowing Lane to score. Barrow popped out to Cooper at third to end the inning.
The Pack added three more runs in its last at-bat. Harkey walked and Davis moved her along with a bunt single back to the bump. But Smith’s work wasn’t done. She followed with an absolute blast, her second homer of the night and fifth hit total, giving the Wolfpack a 10-6 cushion.
Linsday Campana took control of the ball for the Pack in the bottom of the seventh and struck out the side in dominating fashion.
State will return to the yard tomorrow, Saturday, Feb. 9, with two more games. The Pack will face Illinois State at 1:30 p.m., before taking on Central Arkansas at 4 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: McKenzie, Mendy (1-0)
L: COLE, A. (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Cooper, Claudia 1
3B: Presnell, Allison 1
HR: Smith, Shanna 2
RBI: Smith, Shanna 5 ; Presnell, Allison 4
SH: Harkey, Blair 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Smith, Shanna 3 ; Peters, Lauren 1 ; Cooper, Claudia 1 ; Hawkins, Krystal 1 ; Presnell, Allison 1 ; Bechtholdt, Kristine 1 ; Harkey, Blair 1 ; Davis, Ashleigh 1
SB: Smith, Shanna 1
Batting:
2B: MCCLAIN, A. 1
RBI: MCCLAIN, A. 1 ; BARROW, H. 1 ; VAN RYN, A. 1 ; DEAN, L. 3
SH: COUNCIL, M. 1 ; BARROW, H. 1
Base Running:
RUNS: LANE, T. 2 ; MCCLAIN, A. 1 ; JAVIER, B. 1 ; BARROW, H. 1 ; KIME, A. 1
Game Leaders
AB
5
R
3
H
5
RBI
5
AB
5
R
1
H
4
RBI
4
AB
5
R
1
H
3
RBI
0
AB
4
R
1
H
3
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
2B
/ SoftballC/3B
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball3B/DP
/ SoftballOF
/ SoftballOF
/ SoftballC/3B
/ SoftballP
/ Softball2B/SS/OF
/ Softball1B/OF
/ SoftballSS
/ Softball#BehindThe20 with former Pack Stars Abbie Sims and Renada Davis
Wednesday, April 24
Softball: Players Presser (2/15)
Thursday, February 15
Softball: Coach Leftwich Presser (2/15)
Thursday, February 15
EmpowHER with Aisha Weixlmann #Shorts #NCState #GoPack
Monday, October 16