North Carolina State University Athletics
PEELER: Pack Headed to Myrtle Beach for NCAA Play
5/31/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
RALEIGH, N.C. – When Chris Schaeffer walked into the outdoor seating area at Sammy's Tap & Grill Monday afternoon for the NCAA Baseball Championship selection show, he was the last player to arrive.
He received a loud round of applause as he walked through the room shaking hands with each of his teammates, thanking them for their support following Sunday's scary collision at home plate in the ACC Championship game against Florida State.
Schaeffer was diagnosed with a concussion following the incident, but was released from Moses Cone Memorial Hospital Sunday evening around 7:30 p.m. He was eager to watch the postseason tournament pairings with his teammates.
That was a load off the Wolfpack's mind as players, coaches, media and a few fans gathered to watch the selection show. Another loud cheer rang through the restaurant early in the selection show, when "NC State" flashed on the screen as ESPN announced the four teams at the NCAA Myrtle Beach (S.C.) Regional.
The third-seeded Pack will join host and top-seed Coastal Carolina, second seed College of Charleston and Stony Brook in the double-elimination regional. NC State will play College of Charleston Friday at 7 p.m. at BB&T Coastal Park, home of the Single A Myrtle Beach Pelicans.
It is the perfect place for the Wolfpack to continue its recent streak of strong play. Coach Elliott Avent's team had won nine of its final 11 regular-season games and posted wins over Clemson and Virginia Tech in the ACC Tournament, which was played at NewBridge Bank Park in Greensboro.
Avent's team is also familiar with BB&T Coastal Field, the site of the double-elimination regional. In February, the Wolfpack won two of its three games at the Baseball at the Beach Classic, played in the same park, beating fifth-ranked California-Irvine 7-4 on Russell Wilson's three-run homer in the 10th inning and James Madison 6-2.
The Pack lost to host Coastal Carolina 6-3 in the other game.
But senior second baseman Dallas Poulk said he and his teammates for the opportunity to face the Chanticleers again.
"We're a different team now than we were then," Poulk said. "We can certainly use that experience to help us this week. We've played there. We know the ballpark. We know the field. It's definitely a good place for us to play."
Just like this past weekend in Greensboro, the Wolfpack should have a strong fan base at the park, since the park is less than three hours from Raleigh and most points in eastern North Carolina. Also, the 45th annual Wolfpack Jamboree, the annual gathering of men's head coaches and members of the Wolfpack Club, is slated for the Legends Club in Myrtle Beach this weekend.
"We are excited about being able to go to Myrtle Beach," Avent said. "Our fans are going to be able to be there. We love playing in front of our fans."
The coach isn't sure yet about Schaeffer's availability for the weekend. The junior catcher is one of six Wolfpack hitters with 10 or more home runs this season, which is only the second time in school history with that many players with double-figure home runs. He has been the Wolfpack's regular starting catcher all season long, with back-up help from Danny Canela and Pratt Maynard.
He will be monitored this week by the team's medical staff and a decision will be made later in the week, Avent said.
"He was released from the hospital in a quick period of time, which is reassuring," Avent said. "We hope to have him with us this weekend. He is a special part of the program."
After watching the pairings show and going through some light stretching Monday afternoon at Doak Field at Dail Park, the players were told by Avent to go home and do three things to recover from its marathon weekend of baseball: "Rest, rest, rest."
You may contact Tim Peeler at tim_peeler@ncsu.edu.
