Baseball Hosts Wake Forest In ACC Series

RALEIGH, N.C. With its batting eye seemingly coming into focus, NC State welcomes Wake Forest to Doak Field at Dail Park for a three-game series this weekend. Game times are 6:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.

All three games will be broadcast live on WKNC-FM (88.1) and will be available on-line on gopack.com through Pack Pass.

Junior righthander Clayton Shunick (2-3, 2.34) will pitch on Friday for the Wolfpack and will be opposed by Wake Forest junior lefthander Garrett Bullock (3-1, 5.68). Junior lefthander Eric Surkamp (1-2, 5.28) will take the mound for NC State on Saturday against senior righthander Charlie Mellies (0-2, 3.96) for the Deacons. Senior righthander Eryk McConnell (3-1, 4.15) will start on Sunday for the Pack. Wake Forest’s Sunday starting pitcher is still to be announced.

NC State (17-9 overall, 5-6 in the ACC) brings a modest three-game winning streak into this weekend’s series, but what is most encouraging for Wolfpack fans is the fact that the bats seem to be coming around. NC State has 41 hits and scored 24 runs in its past three games to go with exceptional pitching. Ryan Pond (6-for-15), Chris Schaeffer (6-for-14) and Drew Martin (5-for-9) all have hit well the last three games and appear to have the Pack in more of a hitting groove heading into the weekend.

Wake Forest (12-15, 5-6) has struggled this season, to say the least, and the Deacons come into this weekend’s series having dropped three maes in a row and nine of their last 10. They have been outscored 126-37 during the 10-game skid. The pitching staff has given up just 19 runs in the last four games, nine of those coming against Coastal Carolina on Wednesday.

Junior first baseman Allan Dykstra (.310 average, eight home runs, 16 RBIs) is Wake Forest’s most feared hitter, and opposing pitchers have treated him with tremendous respect, walking him 34 times in 27 games. Junior second baseman Dustin Hood (.311-0-21), junior right fielder Evan Ocheltree (.286-3-23) and senior outfielder Willy Fox (.282-2-20) help to carry the load for the Deacons, who enter the series hitting .279 as a team with a 8.08 staff ERA. In ACC games, Wake Forest is batting .239 with a 8.20 ERA.

NC State vs. Wake Forest: NC State holds a 131-101-4 overall record in the series vs. Wake Forest. The Wolfpack has won the last five three-game series from the Deacons, winning each two games to one. The Pack has won eight of the last 11 games against Wake Forest. Elliott Avent is 18-18 vs. Wake Forest since becoming NC State’s head coach in 1997. Avent is 9-6 vs. Wake Forest at Doak Field at Dail Park, 9-8 at Hooks Stadium on the Wake Forest campus, and 0-4 in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament.

A year ago at Hooks Stadium, NC State took two of three from the Deacons. The Wolfpack took the opener 6-4 in 10 innings on an RBI triple by Joe Florio and an RBI single by Ryan Pond. Eryk McConnell picked up the win with 1 1/3 innings of shutout relief. The Deacons bombed the Wolfpack 16-3 in the middle game of the series, with Allan Dykstra hitting a single, double and home run and driving in six runs. The Deacs broke the game open with eight runs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Then-freshman lefty Jimmy Gillheeney, making his first ACC start, carried the Wolfpack to victory in the finale by scattering three hits over 5 2/3 innings while striking out nine. McConnell got the save, and Caleb Mangum drove in two runs in a 3-2 victory.

Slumbering Bats Awakening: With its 12-0 victory over Elon on April 2, NC State rapped out a season-high 17 hits and four home runs, scored double-digit runs for the first time in 11 games, and raised its team batting average eight points, from .273 to .281. Over the three-game stretch from March 29 at No. 3 North Carolina, April 1 at No. 224 East Carolina, and April 2 vs. Elon, the Wolfpack batted .380 (41-for-108) with four doubles and five home runs. What a difference three games can make.

Heading into last weekend’s abbreviated two-game series vs. the Tar Heels, NC State had lost three of its previous four games, and seemed to be in hibernation on offense during the four-game slide. Counting a 9-5 win over Marshall on March 25, the Wolfpack batted .158 (19-for-120) during the four games, and in two of those games March 23 at Clemson and March 26 vs. Marshall the Pack got a combined three hits in 57 at-bats. The four-game slump dropped NC State’s team batting average from .293 to .270. A five-hit performance March 28 vs. UNC’s Alex White dropped the team average to .266. In three games since then, NC State’s average has risen 15 points, to .281.

Bullpen Notes: While NC State’s offense has fluctuated at times, its bullpen has been dominant. For the season, Wolfpack relievers are 11-2 with a 1.68 ERA and 10 saves. The bullpen has allowed 90 hits and 34 walks while striking out 106 in 112 1/3 innings of work.

Three different NC State relievers have recorded saves, with closer Jimmy Gillheeney leading the way with seven, and eight have been credited with victories. In the last 17 games, 48 NC State relievers have gone to the mound, have logged a 7-0 record, saved seven games, and posted a 1.27 ERA. In 70 2/3 innings, the pen allowed 18 runs, 10 earned, on 49 hits and 19 walks while striking out 59.

The bullpen has not lost a game since March 7 vs. Virginia and has not blown a save opportunity all season.

In its last five ACC games, in series at Clemson and at North Carolina, the bullpen went 2-0 with two saves and a 0.73 ERA, allowing one run on 11 hits in 12 1/3 innings, walking three and striking out eight.

For the season, Wolfpack relievers have inherited 50 baserunners and stranded 34 of them. Kyle Rutter has stranded 10 of 12 inherited runners, Jimmy Gillheeney has stranded seven of eight, and Alex Sogard has stranded eight of 11. Joey Cutler has inherited four runners and stranded all four.

Jimmy Gillheeney, Relief Ace: NC State’s long run of standout closers continues in 2008 with the emergence of sophomore lefthander Jimmy Gillheeney. A starter in 2007 and not a prototypical closer in that he does not throw especially hard, Gillheeney has been a lead-pipe cinch at the end of games this season. In 10 appearances, Gillheeney is 1-0 with a 0.55 ERA and seven saves. Gillheeney has allowed one run on seven hits in 16 1/3 innings. He has walked five and fanned 21. He has inherited seven baserunners and stranded six of them. Gillheeney has won or saved each of his last seven appearances.

Typical for a college closer, Gillheeney’s saves have not all one-inning appearances in the ninth inning. His saves have come in all shapes and sizes. His most dramatic save came April 1 at East Carolina when he picked Harrison Eldridge, the potential tying run, off first base to end the game. Gillheeney earned his first save March 2 at The Citadel when he stranded two runners on base in the bottom of the eighth before striking out the side on 10 pitches in the ninth. The following weekend at home against Virginia, he retired the Cavaliers in order in the ninth inning on 10 pitches in the middle game of a three-game ACC series, then entered the series finale with one down and a runner aboard in the ninth and struck out the two men he faced on a combined seven pitches. He recorded the final out in the eighth inning March 29 at North Carolina, then pitched around a pair of hits in the ninth, striking out perennial Wolfpack-killer Chad Flack for the final out of the Pack’s 8-6 win over the third-ranked Tar Heels.

Miscellaneous Pitching Notes: NC State enters play this weekend vs. Wake Forest ranked second in the ACC with a 3.03 ERA, fifth in conference games at 3.75 ... Nationally, through games of March 30 (not counting the wins over East Carolina and Elon this past week), NC State ranked 12th nationally with a 3.15 ERA ... Clayton Shunick ranks sixth in the conference with a 2.34 ERA, and is 14th in ACC games at 3.16 ... Shunick is tied for total strikeouts with 39 and second with 10.19 strikeouts per game. Shunick is second in the ACC with 30 total strikeouts in conference games and leads the league with 10.52 K’s per ACC game ... Jimmy Gillheeney is third in the ACC in saves with seven, but leads the conference with four saves in conference games ... Wolfpack pitchers have allowed double-figure hits nine times in 26 games, and double-digit runs just twice, both to national powerhouse Miami ... NC State pitchers have allowed five hits or less in a game seven times, including twice in the last five games.

Chris Schaeffer Goes 6-for-6: Off to a .220 batting average through his first 14 college games, redshirt-freshman catcher Chris Schaeffer collected base hits in six consecutive at-bats covering three games March 29 at North Carolina, April 1 at East Carolina, and April 2 vs. Elon. Nothing like a 6-for-6 early in the season to take care of a slump. Heading into the Wake Forest series, Schaeffer is batting a solid .294.

For the record, the school record for consecutive hits is 12, set in 2002 by Brian Wright.

Brutal Early Schedule Now Behind The Wolfpack: NC State opened the 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference season by diving head-first into the deep end of the pool. The Wolfpack’s first four series all were against traditional ACC heavyweights Virginia, Miami, at Clemson, at North Carolina. Miami (23-2 overall, 9-1 ACC) and North Carolina (23-5, 8-3) are ranked Nos. 2 and 3, respectively, in the latest Baseball America poll, and Virginia (24-6, 8-4) is No. 14. Clemson (18-10, 6-6) is unranked, but Doug Kingsmore Stadium in Clemson is one of the most daunting places for a visiting team to play.

Through games of April 2, those four teams had a combined overall record of 88-23 (.793) and a combined ACC record of 31-14 (.689). The Wolfpack came through that season-opening gauntlet with a 5-6 record, including a 2-3 combined record against the Hurricanes and Tar Heels.

NC State’s next five ACC series are Wake Forest (12-15, 5-6), Duke (21-7, 4-7), at Virginia Tech (10-18, 0-12), Boston College (13-14, 2-10) and at Maryland (16-13, 3-9). Those five teams combined are 72-67 overall (.518) and 14-44 in the ACC (.241).

Ryan Pond Breaking Out of Slump: Through 17 games this season, senior first baseman/outfielder Ryan Pond was hitting a startling .211 with four home runs and just 11 RBIs. Pond may be coming out of it as the season hits the midpoint. In midweek games this past week at East Carolina and at home vs. Elon, Pond banged out six hits in nine at-bats, including a 4-for-4 night vs. Elon, doubled, homered and drove in six runs. He heads into the Wake Forest series hitting .262 with three doubles, five home runs and 17 RBIs in 19 games.

Home Field Advantage: Since Doak Field reopened in 2005 as Doak Field at Dail Park following a $5 million renovation, NC State has been tough to beat at home. The Wolfpack went 27-5 at home in 2005, the fifth best home record since Doak Field first opened in 1966. The Pack went 24-7 at home in 2006, and finished 24-8 at the Doak a year ago. Off to a 12-5 start at home in 2008, NC State is now 87-25 at home since Doak Field at Dail Park re-opened in 2005, a .777 winning percentage.

Attendance News: Through 17 home games, NC State has drawn 17,752 fans to Doak Field at Dail Park, an average of 1,044 fans per game. Should that figure hold for the remainder of the season, 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.

Promotions: Friday night is Baseball Cap Night. The first 2000 fans will receive a free NC State baseball cap. Friday also is Military Appreciation Night. All active and inactive military members receive a discounted $5 ticket by showing a Military ID.

Saturday is the second Trading Card Night of the season. The first 1000 fans will receive Set #2 of the St. Lawrence Homes Team Trading Card set. Following the game, those 10 players will be signing autographs on the concourse. Saturday also is Boy Scout Night. All Boy Scouts who wear their vest will receive free admission to the game.

Sunday is Y-Guides/Indian Princess Day. Guides and Princesses receive free admission when they wear their vest. And following the game all kids in attendance can participate in Grand Slam Kids Run The Bases day.

North Carolina State University Athletics

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