Friday, March 15
Atlanta, Ga.
4 p.m.
NC State
at
Georgia Tech
Photo by: Mollie Mitchell
#13 Wolfpack Opens Road ACC Play Friday at Georgia Tech
3/14/2024 5:13:00 PM | Baseball
ATLANTA – The No. 13 NC State baseball team opens its road ACC slate this weekend at Georgia Tech. This weekend's series at Russ Chandler Stadium in Atlanta will run Friday through Sunday with first pitch times set for 4 p.m., 4 p.m. and 1 p.m., respectively. Friday's first pitch was moved up two hours due to inclement weather on Friday night in Atlanta.
All three games will still be streamed live on ACC Network Extra. A free audio stream will be available on the Varsity Network App for all three contests. The games will also be available on the radio on WKNC 88.1.
PROJECTED STARTING PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday – RHP Sam Highfill (NCSU) vs. TBD (Georgia Tech)
Saturday – RHP Logan Whitaker (NCSU) vs. RHP Aeden Finateri (Georgia Tech)
Sunday – LHP Dominic Fritton (NCSU) vs. RHP Logan McGuire (Georgia Tech)
THE MATCHUP: SERIES AGAINST GEORGIA TECH
NC State is 62-78 all-time in the series against Georgia Tech. More notes from the series against the Yellow Jackets are listed below:
• NC State and Georgia Tech first met on April 5, 1979, for a doubleheader in Atlanta. The Yellow Jackets won both games (7-5, 8-7) against head coach Sam Esposito's team.
• NC State has won four straight against Georgia Tech, sweeping the Yellow Jackets in March 2022. The Pack won all three games at Doak Field at Dail Park, taking game one 8-6, game two 6-5 and game three 6-1. NC State also defeated Georgia Tech 8-1 in the 2021 ACC Tournament semifinals.
• NC State makes its first trip to Georgia Tech since April 15-17, 2016. The Wolfpack won two games out of three eight years ago, winning 8-3 on Friday and 15-6 on Saturday before dropping the series finale 16-7.
SCOUTING GEORGIA TECH
Georgia Tech's offense ranks inside the top 20 in a plethora of offensive categories, including on-base percentage (.466, 8th), slugging percentage (.586, 14th), batting average (.327, 19th), home runs per game (1.94, T-16th) and doubles per game (2.56, 18th). The Yellow Jackets have won five straight after a four-game sweep over Youngstown State and a 9-5 midweek victory over Mercer. The Yellow Jackets opened the season on a six-game winning streak before dropping four of their next five, losing a pair to in-state rival Georgia, one to Northeastern and one to Cornell. Former NC State infielder Payton Green leads Georgia Tech with 22 runs scored, while freshman Drew Burress paces the Yellow Jackets with 10 homers, 27 RBI and 63 total bases.
HOT START IN THE LEAGUE
Winning games in the ACC is hard. Very hard. The Wolfpack's three-game sweep over Boston College to open league play is its first since sweeping Pittsburgh to open ACC competition in 2019. Before 2019, the feat was also replicated with a three-game sweep over Notre Dame to open league play in 2014.
THE BATS ARE HOT
NC State's offense ranks in the top 30 of many national categories, including batting average (.330, 16th), home runs per game (1.80, 24th), on-base percentage (.438, 26th), slugging percentage (.550, 26th) and scoring (9.7, 22nd).
1,000 WINS IN RED AND WHITE
Head coach Elliott Avent achieved yet another milestone in his coaching career in Feb. 18's 5-3 series-clinching victory over VCU. With the win, Avent captured his 1,000th win as the head coach at NC State. He became the fifth active Division I head coach with 1,000 wins at one school with two wins over his alma mater, VCU. The 28-year Wolfpack head coach joins Danny Hall (Georgia Tech), Keith Guttin (Missouri State), John Anderson (Minnesota) and Gary Gilmore (Coastal Carolina) on the active list. He also became the 35th qualifying Division I head coach (active or inactive) to reach 1,000 wins at one school. Avent's 1,000th victory with the Pack came exactly 9,864 days following his first win at NC State on Feb. 15, 1997, over Charleston Southern (6-0).
A-MAK ATTACK
NC State baseball third baseman Alec Makarewicz has been on a tear since joining the Wolfpack for his final collegiate season, leading the Pack with 34 RBI, 55 total bases, a .821 slugging percentage and 15 extra-base hits. A-Mak earned ACC Player of the Week honors on March 4 after batting .455 with a team-high 10 hits, four doubles, 13 RBI, 20 total bases and six extra-base hits during the prior week. Entering Friday's game, he ranks first in the nation with 2.27 RBI per game and tied for first nationally with 34 total RBI. He's the only player in the nation averaging over two RBI per game.
FRIDAYS ARE FOR THE MAYOR
Sam Highfill, often referred to as The Mayor by his teammates, got the second Opening Day start of his Wolfpack career in the season opener against VCU. After allowing the first three baserunners to reach, Highfill settled in and allowed just one run and one hit over five innings, striking out six batters to earn his second win on Opening Day in his Wolfpack career. His first Opening Day victory came in the Pack's 24-6 Opening Day victory over Evansville on Feb. 18, 2022.
All three games will still be streamed live on ACC Network Extra. A free audio stream will be available on the Varsity Network App for all three contests. The games will also be available on the radio on WKNC 88.1.
PROJECTED STARTING PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday – RHP Sam Highfill (NCSU) vs. TBD (Georgia Tech)
Saturday – RHP Logan Whitaker (NCSU) vs. RHP Aeden Finateri (Georgia Tech)
Sunday – LHP Dominic Fritton (NCSU) vs. RHP Logan McGuire (Georgia Tech)
THE MATCHUP: SERIES AGAINST GEORGIA TECH
NC State is 62-78 all-time in the series against Georgia Tech. More notes from the series against the Yellow Jackets are listed below:
• NC State and Georgia Tech first met on April 5, 1979, for a doubleheader in Atlanta. The Yellow Jackets won both games (7-5, 8-7) against head coach Sam Esposito's team.
• NC State has won four straight against Georgia Tech, sweeping the Yellow Jackets in March 2022. The Pack won all three games at Doak Field at Dail Park, taking game one 8-6, game two 6-5 and game three 6-1. NC State also defeated Georgia Tech 8-1 in the 2021 ACC Tournament semifinals.
• NC State makes its first trip to Georgia Tech since April 15-17, 2016. The Wolfpack won two games out of three eight years ago, winning 8-3 on Friday and 15-6 on Saturday before dropping the series finale 16-7.
SCOUTING GEORGIA TECH
Georgia Tech's offense ranks inside the top 20 in a plethora of offensive categories, including on-base percentage (.466, 8th), slugging percentage (.586, 14th), batting average (.327, 19th), home runs per game (1.94, T-16th) and doubles per game (2.56, 18th). The Yellow Jackets have won five straight after a four-game sweep over Youngstown State and a 9-5 midweek victory over Mercer. The Yellow Jackets opened the season on a six-game winning streak before dropping four of their next five, losing a pair to in-state rival Georgia, one to Northeastern and one to Cornell. Former NC State infielder Payton Green leads Georgia Tech with 22 runs scored, while freshman Drew Burress paces the Yellow Jackets with 10 homers, 27 RBI and 63 total bases.
HOT START IN THE LEAGUE
Winning games in the ACC is hard. Very hard. The Wolfpack's three-game sweep over Boston College to open league play is its first since sweeping Pittsburgh to open ACC competition in 2019. Before 2019, the feat was also replicated with a three-game sweep over Notre Dame to open league play in 2014.
THE BATS ARE HOT
NC State's offense ranks in the top 30 of many national categories, including batting average (.330, 16th), home runs per game (1.80, 24th), on-base percentage (.438, 26th), slugging percentage (.550, 26th) and scoring (9.7, 22nd).
1,000 WINS IN RED AND WHITE
Head coach Elliott Avent achieved yet another milestone in his coaching career in Feb. 18's 5-3 series-clinching victory over VCU. With the win, Avent captured his 1,000th win as the head coach at NC State. He became the fifth active Division I head coach with 1,000 wins at one school with two wins over his alma mater, VCU. The 28-year Wolfpack head coach joins Danny Hall (Georgia Tech), Keith Guttin (Missouri State), John Anderson (Minnesota) and Gary Gilmore (Coastal Carolina) on the active list. He also became the 35th qualifying Division I head coach (active or inactive) to reach 1,000 wins at one school. Avent's 1,000th victory with the Pack came exactly 9,864 days following his first win at NC State on Feb. 15, 1997, over Charleston Southern (6-0).
A-MAK ATTACK
NC State baseball third baseman Alec Makarewicz has been on a tear since joining the Wolfpack for his final collegiate season, leading the Pack with 34 RBI, 55 total bases, a .821 slugging percentage and 15 extra-base hits. A-Mak earned ACC Player of the Week honors on March 4 after batting .455 with a team-high 10 hits, four doubles, 13 RBI, 20 total bases and six extra-base hits during the prior week. Entering Friday's game, he ranks first in the nation with 2.27 RBI per game and tied for first nationally with 34 total RBI. He's the only player in the nation averaging over two RBI per game.
FRIDAYS ARE FOR THE MAYOR
Sam Highfill, often referred to as The Mayor by his teammates, got the second Opening Day start of his Wolfpack career in the season opener against VCU. After allowing the first three baserunners to reach, Highfill settled in and allowed just one run and one hit over five innings, striking out six batters to earn his second win on Opening Day in his Wolfpack career. His first Opening Day victory came in the Pack's 24-6 Opening Day victory over Evansville on Feb. 18, 2022.
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