North Carolina State University Athletics
Baseball Homestand Resumes Wednesday Vs. Quinnipiac
3/12/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
RALEIGH, N.C. NC State’s current 11-game homestand continues Wednesday when Quinnipiac comes to Doak Field at Dail Park for a 3 p.m. game. Sophomore righthander Sam Brown (0-0, 0.00) is scheduled to start for the Wolfpack, while junior righthander Andy Mayer (1-0, 9.00) is slated to start for the Bobcats.
NC State is 8-3 and is coming off its first Atlantic Coast Conference weekend series of the season, which the Pack won over Virginia two games to one. Quinnipiac, on a Southern swing for spring break, is 1-4 after consecutive losses at Davidson, Appalachian State, Wofford and Duke. The Bobcats began their season with a 15-10 victory at Davidson.
Quinnipiac is the defending regular-season Northeast Conference champions. The Bobcats went 29-18-1 overall in 2007, 21-7 in conference play. They return five starting position players and 10 of their top 12 pitchers.
NC State vs. Quinnipiac: Wednesday’s game marks the first meeting in baseball ever between NC State and Quinnipiac. In fact, Wednesday’s game marks only the second time in NC State’s baseball history that the Wolfpack has played an opponent whose name begins with the letter Q. The Pack played the Quantico Marines in 1924 and lost 7-1.
Long Homestand Continues: Wednesday’s game vs. Quinnipiac marks the middle game of NC State’s current 11-game homestand, one of two 11-game homestands during the 2008 season. The Wolfpack is 4-1 through the first five games of the current homestand after defeating No. 12 Virginia twice in three games this past weekend.The Wolfpack will play another 11-game homestand from April 2 vs. Elon through April 16 vs. Radford.
Shunick Voted ACC Pitcher of the Week: Junior righthander Clayton Shunick’s three-hit masterpiece vs. Virginia on March 8 was so impressive that the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Player-of-the-Week media panel unanimously voted Shunick the conference’s Pitcher of the Week for the week of March 3-9. Shunick worked a career-high eight innings against the Cavaliers, shutting them out on three hits. He walked one and struck out a career-high nine. Shunick allowed just four Virginia baserunners to reach scoring position. He also pitched around three NC State errors.
Pitching Carries The Day: NC State won its opening three-game Atlantic Coast Conference of the season, March 8-9 vs. Virginia, on the strength of airtight pitching. The Wolfpack won two of three games against the Cavaliers, despite hitting just .207 (19-for-92) for the series and scoring just nine runs in the three games. In the two games it won, NC State batted .185 (10-for-54). In those same two games, pitchers Clayton Shunick, Eryk McConnell, Alex Sogard, Jake Buchanan and Jimmy Gillheeney combined to allow just two runs, one of them unearned, on seven hits in 18 innings. Wolfpack pitchers walked three and struck out 17 in the two victories over UVa. The Cavaliers batted just .108 (7-for-65) in the two games. For the three-game series, NC State pitchers had a 1.93 ERA in 28 innings, allowing 19 hits, walking six and striking out 29.
Pitching Stats: Through games of March 10, NC State ranked fourth in the ACC with a 2.43 team ERA, but the Wolfpack pitching staff led the league with a 1.93 ERA in conference games. Clayton Shunick leads the ACC in ERA in all games (0.00) and in conference games (0.00). Eryk McConnell is tied for 13th in conference games with a 1.50 ERA, and Eric Surkamp is 20th at 3.00.
Shunick Moves From The Pen To The Rotation: Clayton Shunick’s first start of 2008 earned him ACC Player of the Week honors, but that one start, March 8 vs. Virginia, was merely a continuation of what Shunick did in relief his first two appearances of the year. In two extended outings of the bullpen, Shunick pitched nine innings and allowed just one run, unearned, on seven hits, no walks and nine strikeouts. He held opposing hitters to a .212 batting average and allowed just three baserunners to reach scoring position. Against Virginia, Shunick worked eight innings and allowed no runs on three hits. He walked one and struck out nine. For the season, he has made three appearances, pitched 17 innings and allowed just one run, unearned, on 10 hits with one walk and 18 strikeouts.
Shunick began the 2007 campaign in the bullpen before moving into the starting rotation, where he was much more effective. In 30 2/3 innings out of the bullpen a year ago, Shunick was 3-2 with a 7.04 ERA. In 22 innings as a starter, he was 3-1, 4.91.
Gillheeney Gets Back-To-Back Saves: NC State pitching coach Tom Holliday has expressed doubts that the Wolfpack will have one set closer for the 2008 season. Sophomore lefthander Jimmy Gillheeney is making a case that he can handle the job, however. In five appearances, all in releif, Gillheeney has pitched 8 1/3 innings, allowed no runs on three hits and recorded three saves. He has walked three and struck out 13. Gillheeney has saved the last three games in which he has appeared, working three hitless innings with one walk and six strikeouts. Against Virginia on March 8 in the second game of a doubleheader, Gillheeney set down the side in order on 10 pitches in the ninth inning to preserve Clayton Shunick’s three-hit shutout. Gillheeney came back the next afternoon and struck out the only two men he faced on seven pitches to save a 4-2 win in the series finale for Eryk McConnell.
Wilson Swinging Hot Stick: Russell Wilson soon will be splitting his time between baseball and spring football, but in the time he has devoted to baseball, Wilson has batted .421 and has hit safely in all four of his starts. In his last three starts, March 1 vs. North Carolina A&T, March 4 vs. Valparaiso and March 8 vs. Virginia, Wilson had seven hits in 12 at-bats, going 2-for-5 vs. A&T, 3-for-4 vs. Valpo, and 2-for-3 vs. UVa. Wilson is one of five NC State hitters with three multiple-RBI games.
Lineup Juggling: With his team scuffling to score runs, NC State head coach Elliott Avent has juggled his lineup and milked his roster in an attempt to find the right offensive combination. Through 11 games, Avent’s starting lineups have featured two different hitters batting leadoff, six batting second, five batting third, four batting fourth, seven batting sixth, five batting seventh, four batting eighth, and two batting ninth.
The most commonly used hitter at any spot in the starting lineup is Dallas Poulk, who been used eight times in the leadoff spot. Tommy Foschi has started seven games batting eighth and Drew Martin has started seven games batting ninth. Nick Stanley has been in the two spot in the order six times.
Poulk Streak Stops At 23: Virginia All-American Jacob Thompson and two relievers held Dallas Poulk hitless March 8 in the first game of NC State’s three-game ACC series vs. the Cavaliers, snapping Poulk’s hitting streak at 23 games. Poulk hit safely in the first six games in which he played in 2008 and batted .346 (9-for-26) in those six games. He also hit safely in the final 17 games of 2007, batting .459 (34-for-74) during those 17 games. Poulk batted .416 (47-for-113) during the 23-game hitting streak, which is the longest by a Wolfpack hitter during the Elliott Avent era. The school record for a hitting streak is 26 games by Greg Briley in 1986. Tom Sergio had a 25-game streak in 1995. Poulk’s 23-game streak is the third-longest in NC State history.
Coming Soon: Following the Wolfpack’s game Wednesday vs. Quinnipiac, fifth-ranked Miami will be in town for the Pack’s second ACC series of the season. Game times will be 6:30 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday and 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Next week, Towson will be at Doak Field at Dail Park for 3 p.m. games on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Attendance News: Through eight home games, NC State has drawn 8483 fans to Doak Field at Dail Park, an average of 1,060 fans per game. Should that figure hold for the remainder of the season and it should go up as the weather gets warmer and the conference season heats up NC State will finish with its fourth-best season ever for average attendance. The Wolfpack averaged 1,308 per game in 1995. A year ago, an average of 1,176 fans per game came through the turnstiles at the Doak, two more per game than attended in 2006.
NC State is 8-3 and is coming off its first Atlantic Coast Conference weekend series of the season, which the Pack won over Virginia two games to one. Quinnipiac, on a Southern swing for spring break, is 1-4 after consecutive losses at Davidson, Appalachian State, Wofford and Duke. The Bobcats began their season with a 15-10 victory at Davidson.
Quinnipiac is the defending regular-season Northeast Conference champions. The Bobcats went 29-18-1 overall in 2007, 21-7 in conference play. They return five starting position players and 10 of their top 12 pitchers.
NC State vs. Quinnipiac: Wednesday’s game marks the first meeting in baseball ever between NC State and Quinnipiac. In fact, Wednesday’s game marks only the second time in NC State’s baseball history that the Wolfpack has played an opponent whose name begins with the letter Q. The Pack played the Quantico Marines in 1924 and lost 7-1.
Long Homestand Continues: Wednesday’s game vs. Quinnipiac marks the middle game of NC State’s current 11-game homestand, one of two 11-game homestands during the 2008 season. The Wolfpack is 4-1 through the first five games of the current homestand after defeating No. 12 Virginia twice in three games this past weekend.The Wolfpack will play another 11-game homestand from April 2 vs. Elon through April 16 vs. Radford.
Shunick Voted ACC Pitcher of the Week: Junior righthander Clayton Shunick’s three-hit masterpiece vs. Virginia on March 8 was so impressive that the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Player-of-the-Week media panel unanimously voted Shunick the conference’s Pitcher of the Week for the week of March 3-9. Shunick worked a career-high eight innings against the Cavaliers, shutting them out on three hits. He walked one and struck out a career-high nine. Shunick allowed just four Virginia baserunners to reach scoring position. He also pitched around three NC State errors.
Pitching Carries The Day: NC State won its opening three-game Atlantic Coast Conference of the season, March 8-9 vs. Virginia, on the strength of airtight pitching. The Wolfpack won two of three games against the Cavaliers, despite hitting just .207 (19-for-92) for the series and scoring just nine runs in the three games. In the two games it won, NC State batted .185 (10-for-54). In those same two games, pitchers Clayton Shunick, Eryk McConnell, Alex Sogard, Jake Buchanan and Jimmy Gillheeney combined to allow just two runs, one of them unearned, on seven hits in 18 innings. Wolfpack pitchers walked three and struck out 17 in the two victories over UVa. The Cavaliers batted just .108 (7-for-65) in the two games. For the three-game series, NC State pitchers had a 1.93 ERA in 28 innings, allowing 19 hits, walking six and striking out 29.
Pitching Stats: Through games of March 10, NC State ranked fourth in the ACC with a 2.43 team ERA, but the Wolfpack pitching staff led the league with a 1.93 ERA in conference games. Clayton Shunick leads the ACC in ERA in all games (0.00) and in conference games (0.00). Eryk McConnell is tied for 13th in conference games with a 1.50 ERA, and Eric Surkamp is 20th at 3.00.
Shunick Moves From The Pen To The Rotation: Clayton Shunick’s first start of 2008 earned him ACC Player of the Week honors, but that one start, March 8 vs. Virginia, was merely a continuation of what Shunick did in relief his first two appearances of the year. In two extended outings of the bullpen, Shunick pitched nine innings and allowed just one run, unearned, on seven hits, no walks and nine strikeouts. He held opposing hitters to a .212 batting average and allowed just three baserunners to reach scoring position. Against Virginia, Shunick worked eight innings and allowed no runs on three hits. He walked one and struck out nine. For the season, he has made three appearances, pitched 17 innings and allowed just one run, unearned, on 10 hits with one walk and 18 strikeouts.
Shunick began the 2007 campaign in the bullpen before moving into the starting rotation, where he was much more effective. In 30 2/3 innings out of the bullpen a year ago, Shunick was 3-2 with a 7.04 ERA. In 22 innings as a starter, he was 3-1, 4.91.
Gillheeney Gets Back-To-Back Saves: NC State pitching coach Tom Holliday has expressed doubts that the Wolfpack will have one set closer for the 2008 season. Sophomore lefthander Jimmy Gillheeney is making a case that he can handle the job, however. In five appearances, all in releif, Gillheeney has pitched 8 1/3 innings, allowed no runs on three hits and recorded three saves. He has walked three and struck out 13. Gillheeney has saved the last three games in which he has appeared, working three hitless innings with one walk and six strikeouts. Against Virginia on March 8 in the second game of a doubleheader, Gillheeney set down the side in order on 10 pitches in the ninth inning to preserve Clayton Shunick’s three-hit shutout. Gillheeney came back the next afternoon and struck out the only two men he faced on seven pitches to save a 4-2 win in the series finale for Eryk McConnell.
Wilson Swinging Hot Stick: Russell Wilson soon will be splitting his time between baseball and spring football, but in the time he has devoted to baseball, Wilson has batted .421 and has hit safely in all four of his starts. In his last three starts, March 1 vs. North Carolina A&T, March 4 vs. Valparaiso and March 8 vs. Virginia, Wilson had seven hits in 12 at-bats, going 2-for-5 vs. A&T, 3-for-4 vs. Valpo, and 2-for-3 vs. UVa. Wilson is one of five NC State hitters with three multiple-RBI games.
Lineup Juggling: With his team scuffling to score runs, NC State head coach Elliott Avent has juggled his lineup and milked his roster in an attempt to find the right offensive combination. Through 11 games, Avent’s starting lineups have featured two different hitters batting leadoff, six batting second, five batting third, four batting fourth, seven batting sixth, five batting seventh, four batting eighth, and two batting ninth.
The most commonly used hitter at any spot in the starting lineup is Dallas Poulk, who been used eight times in the leadoff spot. Tommy Foschi has started seven games batting eighth and Drew Martin has started seven games batting ninth. Nick Stanley has been in the two spot in the order six times.
Poulk Streak Stops At 23: Virginia All-American Jacob Thompson and two relievers held Dallas Poulk hitless March 8 in the first game of NC State’s three-game ACC series vs. the Cavaliers, snapping Poulk’s hitting streak at 23 games. Poulk hit safely in the first six games in which he played in 2008 and batted .346 (9-for-26) in those six games. He also hit safely in the final 17 games of 2007, batting .459 (34-for-74) during those 17 games. Poulk batted .416 (47-for-113) during the 23-game hitting streak, which is the longest by a Wolfpack hitter during the Elliott Avent era. The school record for a hitting streak is 26 games by Greg Briley in 1986. Tom Sergio had a 25-game streak in 1995. Poulk’s 23-game streak is the third-longest in NC State history.
Coming Soon: Following the Wolfpack’s game Wednesday vs. Quinnipiac, fifth-ranked Miami will be in town for the Pack’s second ACC series of the season. Game times will be 6:30 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday and 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Next week, Towson will be at Doak Field at Dail Park for 3 p.m. games on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Attendance News: Through eight home games, NC State has drawn 8483 fans to Doak Field at Dail Park, an average of 1,060 fans per game. Should that figure hold for the remainder of the season and it should go up as the weather gets warmer and the conference season heats up NC State will finish with its fourth-best season ever for average attendance. The Wolfpack averaged 1,308 per game in 1995. A year ago, an average of 1,176 fans per game came through the turnstiles at the Doak, two more per game than attended in 2006.
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