North Carolina State University Athletics
Wolfpack Softball Battles UNC on Senior Day This Weekend
4/16/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
RALEIGH, N.C. -- The NC State softball team will host UNC-Chapel Hill this weekend in the final home conference series of the season. Games were originally scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, but with rain in the forecast for Sunday, games have been moved to Friday and Saturday.
The teams will play a single game on Friday at 6 p.m. and a doubleheader on Saturday slated to begin at 1 p.m. at Dail Stadium. Fans attending Friday's game are encouraged to arrive early and park in the Coliseum Deck, as there will be heavy traffic on campus due to events held at Carmichael Gymnasium and Talley Student Center.
Both of Saturday's games will be broadcast live on ESPN3/Watch ESPN.
NC State enters the weekend with a 25-17 overall record and a 9-6 mark in ACC play, while UNC is 31-10 and 13-3 in conference action. 
Last season, State won the regular season series held at UNC by winning the first and final game of the series. The Wolfpack earned a 7-5 come-from-behind win in game one aided by a pinch-hit home run from sophomore Tyler Ross. UNC won game two, but NC State answered with a 4-2 win in game three to clinch the series. 
It marked the second consecutive year that NC State has won the series against the Tar Heels, as head coach Shawn Rychcik has not lost the series to the rival school in his tenure. In 2013, The Pack won the last two games of the three-game set at home to claim the series.
Scouting UNC-Chapel Hill
North Carolina enters the weekend with a 4-5 record in true road games this season. The Tar Heels swept Georgia Tech in their most recent outing, after inclement weather forced the squad to cancel Tuesday and Wednesday's games.
Taylor Wike leads the Heels at the plate with a .440 batting average to go along with 51 hits. Aquilla Mateen has tallied the most hits on the squad with 52 to compile a .409 clip at the plate. Kristen Brown provides the power for the team with an NCAA-leading 18 home runs.
As a team, UNC is batting .335 and averages 7.49 runs per game. 
In the pitcher's circle, Kaylee Carlson and Sydney Matzko have split time with the former owning a 14-5 record and the latter a 12-4 mark. Carlson has given up 47 earned runs in 112 innings pitched to compile a 2.94 earned run average (ERA), while Matzko has a 2.36 ERA with 29 runs in 86 innings.
The Tar Heels have a team ERA of 3.04 and allow 3.37 runs per game.
Davis -- Red Hot
Senior shortstop Renada Davis has been on a tear in recent weeks and has reached base safely in a program-best 32 consecutive games. She broke the record at Georgia Tech on March 29 by reaching for the 22nd straight game to eclipse her previous school record of 21 she set in 2013. 
In the past 18 games, the Tomball, Texas, native is batting .547 with 29 hits, 19 RBI and runs scored, 17 walks, seven doubles and five home runs.
Swing & a Miss, Strike Three!
Senior pitcher Emily Weiman has had her way with opposing batters this season and currently leads the ACC with 224 strikeouts. That total also ranks ninth among active pitchers in the NCAA. She also has the second-most career strikeouts among active pitchers with 958. 
Scoring First
When scoring the first run of a game this season, the Wolfpack has compiled a 21-5 record and in contrast, is just 4-12 when the opponent scores first.
Gimme Five
NC State is 20-2 this season when scoring at least five runs in a game. The Pack is just 5-15 when scoring less than five runs. 
Jumping On Them Early
NC State has jumped on opponents early this season, scoring 35 runs in the first inning. The Wolfpack is outscoring opponents, 35-20, in the opening frame and is 15-2 when it scores in the first inning.
Crucial Fourth Inning
When the Pack is leading the game at the end of the fourth inning, it has compiled a 22-2 record this season. State is 0-13 when trailing after the fourth and 3-1 when the score is tied. 
#STATEment
 
