No. 6 NC State Baseball Opens 2017 Season in Hawaii

NC State (0-0) at Hawai'i (0-0)
Date	Friday - Sunday, Feb. 17-19
Time	11:35 p.m. ET (Fri. & Sat.), 5:05 p.m. ET (Sun.)
Location	Les Murakami Stadium (Honolulu, O'Ahu)
Live Stats	Stat Broadcast
Live Video	Hawaii All-Access (FREE)
Radio	Wolfpack Sports Network
Social Media	@NCStateBaseball

HONOLULU – The sixth-ranked NC State baseball team will open the 2017 season in Hawaii with a three-game series against the host Rainbow Warriors this weekend. Friday and Saturday's contests are slated to begin at 11:35 p.m. (ET), while first pitch of Sunday's game is set for 12:05 p.m. ET. at Les Murakami Stadium.

All three games will be carried live on the radio, WKNC 88.1 FM, while Friday and Saturday's games will have a FREE live video stream on the Rainbow Warriors website (hawaiiathletics.com).

Recapping 2016
Last season, NC State finished the year with a 38-22 overall record, highlighted by advancing to final of the NCAA Raleigh Regional. The Wolfpack was one out away from a trip to the super regionals, but fell to eventual National Champion Coastal Carolina.

It was the fifth time that the Pack has hosted a regional, all of which have come under current head coach Elliott Avent, now entering his 21^st season with the program.

On the Mound
Following an impressive preseason, senior left-hander Sean Adler will make the opening day start on the mound for NC State and be opposed by Hawai'i senior right-hander Brendan Hornung Friday night. Saturday the Wolfpack will go with Cody Beckman and the Rainbow Warriors will counter with Dominic DeMiero.

Tommy DeJuneas will start for the Pack in Sunday's game and Hawai'i has not announced a starter for Sunday's tilt.

Wolfpack in Season Openers Under Avent
NC State owns a 13-7 mark in season openers under Avent's leadership. Last season, the Wolfpack dropped a 5-0 decision against Old Dominion.

Finishing Strong
Junior Joe Dunand finished the 2016 season strong, as he concluded the year on an eight-game hitting streak that he hopes to extend in the opener Friday. Classmate Evan Mendoza heads into the season on a five-game hitting streak.

Dunand Named to Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List
On Wednesday, Dunand was one of 55 players selected to the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List. The Miami, Fla., native hit .297 in 2016 to go along with 70 hits, 41 RBIs and 35 runs scored.

A Trip of Firsts
NC State and Hawai'i will be meeting for the first time in the history of the programs this weekend. Additionally, the trip to Honolulu serves as the first trip to Hawai'i for everyone on the 2017 Wolfpack baseball squad, except Sean Adler and Michael Bienlien.

Adler has been to Maui, but never to Honolulu while Bienlien was born in Hawaii and lived there until he was six.

Reunion of Teammates
NC State junior pitcher Zach Usselman will be reunited with one of his former teammates this weekend, as he and Hawai'i pitcher Dominic DeMiero both played two seasons at Bellevue Community College before transferring to their respective schools.

Fantastic FOURth
The Wolfpack scored 62 runs in the fourth inning last season, 11 more than in any other inning.

First to Score
NC State recorded a 22-3 record when scoring the first run of a game in 2016. Additionally, the Pack was 19-2 when scoring in the first inning.

Protecting the Lead
When leading after the fifth inning last season, NCSU put together a 30-3 overall record. That total jumped to 33-3 when leading after seven and 34-3 when leading after the eighth inning.

Scouting Hawai'i
Hawai'i finished the 2016 season with a 23-30 overall record, including a 12-12 ledger in Big West Conference action. The Rainbow Warriors compiled a 14-21 mark in home games played at Les Murakami Stadium.

Catcher Kekai Rios is the squad's top returner from a season ago, as the O'Ahu native recorded a .331 batting average in his freshman campaign to garner All-Big West Honorable Mention. Classmate Ethan Lopez is also back for the 'Bows to strengthen the lineup, as he hit .302 to finish third on the team in batting average and tied for the team lead in slugging percentage.

The Rainbow Warriors recorded a team batting average of .265 last season. Hawai'i only managed six home runs in 2016, but hit 78 double and 16 triples to help offset the home run production. They averaged 4.08 runs per game last year.

On the mound, Brendan Hornung is the team's top returning pitcher, as he made 16 starts last year and compiled a 3.11 ERA to go along with a 4-7 record. The Warriors had a staff ERA of 4.18 last season.

#STATEment

No. 6 NC State Baseball Opens 2017 Season in Hawaii

Players Mentioned

Sean Adler

Cody Beckman

Michael Bienlien

Tommy DeJuneas

Joe Dunand

Evan Mendoza

Zach Usselman

Related Videos