North Carolina State University Athletics
Baseball Opens Homestand Vs. Davidson
2/28/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 28, 2011
RALEIGH, N.C. -- After taking two of three games this past weekend at Baseball at the Beach in Myrtle Beach, S.C., NC State begins a six-game homestand Tuesday with a 3 p.m. game against Davidson.
Following the game with the Wildcats, the Wolfpack will host a three-game series this weekend vs. Penn State, then wrap up the homestand next Tuesday and Wednesday with games against Radford.
Fans planning on attending Tuesday's game vs. Davidson should be aware of parking restrictions in the vicinity of Doak Field at Dail Park. Click here for full information on gameday parking.
Sophomore righthander Ethan Ogburn will start for NC State. Senior righthander Andy Bass will start for Davidson, which is 5-4.
NC State holds a 71-20 record in the series vs. Davidson. The two teams last met April 18, 2007, with the Wolfpack taking a 14-3 decision from the Wildcats. Tommy Foschi was the offensive star for the Wolfpack that night, going 3-for-5 with two doubles and four RBIs. Ryan Howard and Jeremy Synan drove in two runs apiece for NC State. Joey Cutler got the win with 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief work. He struck out six.
NC State (3-3) is coming off a strong weekend in Myrtle Beach. The Wolfpack defeated Pacific 13-4 on Friday, fell to now-14th-ranked California 4-0 on Saturday, and beat 17th-ranked Coastal Carolina 12-3. Center fielder Brett Williams went 8-for-11 with a home run and five RBIs in the three games to lead the offense, which reached double figures in scoring for the second and third times in six games this season.
"I thought we played better this weekend than we did the first weekend of the season, but we're still a long way from where we need to be," NC State head coach Elliott Avent said. "We still have to execute better in critical situations in close games."
NC State had plenty of scoring opportunities Friday vs. Pacific and cashed in most of them, thanks to 10 RBIs from the bottom three spots in the batting order. Williams went 3-for-3 with a homer and a career-best five RBIs, and relievers Vance Williams, Rob Chamra and Nick Rice combined to work five scoreless innings.
Facing a pair of likely high draft picks against Cal, the Wolfpack's scoring opportunities were limited on Saturday. Cory Mazzoni was outstanding for 91 of his 93 pitches, but a second-inning double by Chadd Krist and a three-run homer two batters later by Andrew Knapp was all the offense the Bears needed.
Williams moved to the leadoff spot on Sunday vs. Coastal Carolina and went 4-for-5, scored twice and drove in a run. Pratt Maynard and Tarran Senay drove in three runs apiece for the Pack. Harold Riggins tripled twice and drove in a pair of runs. Danny Healey allowed just two runs on two hits in seven innings, tying a career high with six strikeouts.
The game vs. Davidson will be broadcast live on WKNC-FM (88.1), and the broadcast can be heard on-line on GoPack.com's All-Access package. Live stats will be available on Gametracker. Just click the Gametracker icon on the baseball schedule page on GoPack.com.
As always, visit GoPack.com regularly for full coverage of all NC State athletics news and events.
