NC State
28-14
The Citadel
19-21
#Pack9 Cruises Past The Citadel 12-3
4/29/2023 7:51:00 PM | Baseball
NC State (28-14) scored all five of its runs in the second inning with two outs. Noah Soles opened the scoring with a bases-clearing triple to center field, putting the Pack ahead 3-0. LuJames Groover III then got the green light on a 3-0 pitch, crushing a 418-foot home run to left center to make it 5-0 Wolfpack.
After The Citadel (19-21) trimmed NC State's lead to 5-2 in the fourth, the Wolfpack restored its five-run lead to 7-2 behind an RBI triple from Soles and an RBI groundout from Groover III. Kalae Harrison extended the lead to 8-2 in the fifth with an RBI single to right field.
Trevor Candelaria and Cannon Peebles homered in back-to-back at-bats in the sixth inning, stretching NC State's lead to nine at 11-2. Candelaria and Peebles became the first Wolfpack duo to hit back-to-back homers since Soles and Parker Nolan did so against Elon on March 14.
NC State scored its final run of the afternoon on a sacrifice fly from pinch hitter Dominic Pilolli, making it 12-2 Wolfpack in the seventh. The Citadel brought home the game's final run behind Wells Sykes' RBI triple in the top of the eighth.
Sam Highfill (4-1) earned the win on the mound after tossing four innings of relief of starter Matt Willadsen. Highfill allowed just four hits and struck out three Bulldogs on the afternoon.
Win Scott pitched a perfect ninth inning, striking out two batters to face the minimum. Citadel starting pitcher Cameron Reeves (6-4) suffered the loss on Saturday afternoon.
Soles fell just 10 feet short of the Pack's first cycle since 2006 when he lined out to the warning track in center field. Soles led NC State with a 3-for-4 day at the plate with four RBI, a double, a triple and two runs scored. Groover III recorded three RBI, while Peebles and Payton Green each tallied two hits apiece.
The Wolfpack slugged three homers in Saturday's win, marking the 11th time this season NC State has hit three or more home runs in a game.
UP NEXT
NC State goes for the sweep against The Citadel on Sunday at 1 p.m. Sunday's series finale will stream live on ACCNX.
#Pack9 | @NCStateBaseball
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Highfill, Sam (4-1)
L: Cameron Reeves (6-4)
Batting:
2B: Crosby Jones 1
3B: Wells Sykes 1
HR: Travis Lott 1
RBI: Travis Lott 1 ; Wells Sykes 1 ; Crosby Jones 1
SH: Wells Sykes 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Travis Lott 1 ; Noah Mitchell 2
SB: Matthew Lively 1 ; Dylan Costa 1
CS: Clay Wilson 1
Batting:
2B: Soles, Noah 1 ; Green, Payton 1
3B: Soles, Noah 1 ; Cozart, Jacob 1
HR: Groover III, LuJames 1 ; Candelaria, Trevor 1 ; Peebles, Cannon 1
RBI: Soles, Noah 4 ; Pilolli, Dominic 1 ; Groover III, LuJames 3 ; Candelaria, Trevor 2 ; Peebles, Cannon 1 ; Harrison, Kalae 1
SH: Harrison, Kalae 1
SF: Pilolli, Dominic 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Soles, Noah 2 ; Groover III, LuJames 1 ; Cozart, Jacob 1 ; Candelaria, Trevor 1 ; Peebles, Cannon 2 ; Serrano III, Eli 1 ; Green, Payton 3 ; Harrison, Kalae 1
