NC State
30-19, 16-11
Wake Forest
36-17, 15-13
No. 17 Baseball Opens Final Series with 14-3 Win over No. 8 Wake Forest
5/16/2024 11:55:00 PM | Baseball
Cooper Consiglio Fans Career-High Seven Batters
Freshman Cooper Consiglio picked up the win on the mound for the Wolfpack, improving to 4-4 on the year while contributing a career-best seven strikeouts on 3.2 innings of work.
After a pair of solo home runs pushed Wake Forest ahead 2-0 in the second inning, the Pack responded by scoring in the home halves of the second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and eighth frames.
Luke Nixon broke the ice for NC State in the bottom of the second inning, following a Brandon Butterworth triple with a RBI single to put the Pack on the board and cut Wake's 2-0 advantage in half.
Alec Makarewicz knotted the score in the third with his 19th home run of the season, sending a 3-0 pitch over the right-field wall to tie the Demon Deacons at 2-2.
The Wolfpack put up its first of three multi-run innings in the fourth frame, with a balk from Wake's Haiden Leffew resulting in a go-ahead run to put NC State on top 3-2.
Eli Serrano III doubled the Pack's lead by produced a RBI groundout that plated Sosa, who reached base in each of his four plate appearances.
The Demon Deacons trimmed NC State's lead to 4-3 after a solo home run from Nick Kurtz, with the Pack responding by tabbing two runs in the fifth inning and another in the sixth.
A RBI grounder from Nixon plated Makarewicz while an error later brough Butterworth home, pushing the Pack ahead 6-3.
NC State added to its lead in the sixth frame when Serrano III tallied his second RBI of the evening, this one coming on a single that plated Noah Soles to extend the lead to 7-3.
The Wolfpack offense exploded for seven runs in the eighth and final ending, beginning with a RBI single from Makarewicz that scored Serrano III followed by back-to-back bases-loaded walks from Butterworth and Nixon. With NC State ahead 10-3, Sosa capped the night with a no-doubter to right field to clinch the opening game of the series for the Wolfpack at 14-3 in eight innings.
Starter David Falco Jr. took the loss for Wake Forest, while the Demon Deacons' offense totaled seven hits to NC State's ten.
The Wolfpack and Demon Deacons return to action on Friday, May 17, with each team set for its penultimate game of the 2024 regular season. First pitch is slated for 7 p.m. at Doak Field, with Friday's contest to be broadcast on the ACC Network.
#GoPack | @NCStateBaseball
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Consiglio, Cooper (4-4)
L: David Falco Jr. (2-4)
Batting:
2B: Jack Winnay 1 ; Jake Reinisch 1
HR: Nick Kurtz 1 ; Seaver King 1 ; Adam Tellier 1
RBI: Nick Kurtz 1 ; Seaver King 1 ; Adam Tellier 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Nick Kurtz 1 ; Seaver King 1 ; Adam Tellier 1
HBP: Mitchell Salvino 1
Batting:
3B: Butterworth, Brandon 1
HR: Makarewicz, Alec 1 ; Sosa, Alex 1
RBI: Serrano III, Eli 2 ; Makarewicz, Alec 2 ; Butterworth, Brandon 1 ; Nixon, Luke 3 ; Sosa, Alex 4
Base Running:
RUNS: Serrano III, Eli 1 ; Pennington, Garrett 1 ; Makarewicz, Alec 3 ; Cozart, Jacob 1 ; Butterworth, Brandon 3 ; Nixon, Luke 2 ; Sosa, Alex 2 ; Soles, Noah 1
SB: Nixon, Luke 1 ; Sosa, Alex 1
HBP: Makarewicz, Alec 1 ; Sosa, Alex 1
