North Carolina State University Athletics
Softball Hosts Boston College in ACC Opener
3/14/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
RALEIGH, N.C. - NC State will welcome Boston College this weekend for three games, opening the ACC portion of its schedule. The Pack will take on the Eagles at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 15, before wrapping the series up with a 1 p.m. contest on Sunday, March 16. Live stats for all three games will be available on GoPack.com.
State (14-12, 0-0 ACC) enters the series riding a season-high three-game winning streak after going 4-1 at the UCF Under Armour Invitational in Clearwater, Fla. last weekend. In all, the Pack has won five of it’s last six, and went 7-4 on its recent 11-day road swing through Georgia and Florida.
Boston College (9-13, 0-0 ACC) went 2-3 last weekend at the National Invitational Softball Tournament in Hayward, Calif., picking up decisions over Nevada and Northern Iowa. The Eagles .211 team batting average is the lowest in the conference, while its 3.07 pitching staff ERA is next to last.
Renee Ramos leads BC with a .355 clip at the plate, carrying three doubles, three dingers and 14 RBIs. Carley McNary has shown an ability to swipe bags, going 7-for-8 so far this year in stolen base attempts. The Eagles make use of four pitchers, with Allison Gage (80.0) and Taylor Peyton (52.0) working the majority of the innings. Gage owns a 4-8 record with a 3.15 ERA, while Peyton is 5-4 with a 3.81 mark.
BC’s hurlers have had to deal with something that the Pack’s own Lindsay Campana has had to bear ... dealing with unearned runs. Gage has had to handle 13 unearned runs, while Peyton has been hit with 17.
The All-Time Series
State leads the all-time series between the two programs, 7-1. The Eagles lone win came in the last meeting between the two programs, on opening day of the 2007 ACC Tournament last May 10. BC upset the Pack, 2-0, and State later lost to Maryland to get knocked out of the field on the same day.
Among the League Standings
The Pack’s .243 batting average is seventh-best among all teams in the ACC, while its .967 fielding percentage is second-best. The pitching staff’s 1.98 ERA is fifth.
Icebox
Alyssa Allbritten goes by her nickname Icebox.’ Whatever you want to call her, she’s had a serious impact on the Wolfpack offense as of late. The true freshman is second on the team in batting average (.329) and is tied for first in hits with 23. She also leads the ACC in doubles with 11 (four more than the second-place holder), and is tied for first in the league for total bases with 43. Her .614 slugging percentage is fourth-best in the conference.
Smith Leads By Example
Shanna Smith ranks in the top-10 of several offensive categories among all ACC players. Smith leads the league in walks (19), is tied for first in runs scored (22), third in stolen bases (13), fourth in total bases (42), tied for fourth in doubles (5), eighth in on-base percentage (.443) and 10th in slugging (.513).
A Little Help From My Friends?
Lindsay Campana’s 7-10 record isn’t totally indicitive of her performance this season. Despite leading, or ranking near the top, of many statistical categories among conference pitchers, Campana’s record has suffered from a lack of run support, as well as unearned runs. While in the circle, Campana has allowed 28 earned runs, but an additional 19 unearned runs have taken its toll on her record. State’s offense has left 108 runners on base in games that Campana has started.
March Brings Out The Real Presnell
As all players do at times, Allison Presnell struggled through a slump between Feb. 15-29, recording just one hit over the two week period. Since March 1 however, Presnell leads the team with 11 hits, a .423 batting average and 7 RBIs. She nailed a three-run bomb down the left field line to put the Pack over Maine (8-0) in six innings on March 7 at the USF Under Armour Invitational. Her .338 batting average is currently tops on the team.
Allbritten, Holm, Ishibashi Leading the Way for Freshmen
On a team making the most of its underclassmen, freshmen Alyssa Allbritten, Lacey Holm and Alyssa Ishibashi have all looked impressive thus far. Allbritten’s .329 batting average is second-best on the team, while her 16 RBIs is a team-best. Holm has split time at third base, behind the plate and as a designated player. Her bat has been hot of late, putting together 10 hits, three RBIs and a double for a .476 average in six games last week. Ishibashi has played second and third, and posts 12 RBIs, good for third-best on the Wolfpack roster.
Campana Carries the Load
With 100.2 innings under her belt, Lindsay Campana (7-10) leads the ACC in innings pitched and games started (15). She is tied for first in complete games (10), second in both appearances (19) and strikeouts (90) and tied for second in wins.
