#12 Wolfpack Opens ACC Tournament on Wednesday Night in Charlotte

Photo by: Mollie Mitchell

#12 Wolfpack Opens ACC Tournament on Wednesday Night in Charlotte

5/21/2024 5:35:00 PM | Baseball

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Third-Seeded NC State Plays 10th-Seeded Virginia Tech, Sixth-Seeded Duke in Pool C

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The No. 12 NC State baseball team heads to Charlotte for pool play in the ACC Tournament. The third-seeded Wolfpack opens play in Pool C against 10^th-seeded Virginia Tech on Wednesday night at Truist Field. Wednesday night's matchup against the Hokies is set for 7 p.m. and will be televised on ACC Network.

NC State concludes pool play on Thursday night against sixth-seeded Duke. Thursday's contest against the 17^th-ranked Blue Devils is also set for 7 p.m. on the ACC Network.

A free audio stream will be available on the Varsity Network App for both contests. Both games will also be available on the radio on WKNC 88.1 with Andrew Sanders on the call.

POOL C SCHEDULE
No. 10 Virginia Tech vs. No. 6 Duke (Tuesday | 7 p.m. | ACC Network)
No. 3 NC State vs. No. 10 Virginia Tech (Wednesday | 7 p.m. | ACC Network)
No. 6 Duke vs. No. 3 NC State (Thursday | 7 p.m. | ACC Network)

THE MATCHUP: SERIES AGAINST VIRGINIA TECH
NC State holds a 49-24-2 advantage in the series against Virginia Tech. More notes from the series against the Hokies are listed below:

• NC State and Virginia Tech last met on April 10, 2022, in Blacksburg. The Wolfpack avoided the series sweep with a 10-3 win over the Hokies.
• NC State swept No. 15 Virginia Tech from April 23-25, 2021, in Raleigh. The Pack capped off the series sweep with a pair of wins in a doubleheader on April 25, capturing an 11-3 win in game one before notching a 7-6 win in game two.
• NC State and Virginia Tech have met just once in the ACC Tournament. The Wolfpack notched a 10-9 victory over the Hokies on May 29, 2010, in Greensboro.

THE MATCHUP: SERIES AGAINST DUKE
NC State is 166-129-1 all-time in the series against Duke. More notes from the series against the Blue Devils are listed below:

• NC State secured back-to-back one-run wins to earn a series victory over No. 9 Duke earlier this season. The Wolfpack rallied from early deficits in both games to clinch the series, winning 4-3 on Friday and 9-8 on Saturday. On Saturday, Eli Serrano III launched a two-out, two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth for a walk-off victory. The Wolfpack erased an 8-2 deficit between the eighth and ninth innings.
• NC State and Duke's most recent ACC Tournament matchup came in Durham in 2023. The Wolfpack registered an 8-7 win in 11 innings at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Duke erased NC State's 7-1 lead to send the game to extra innings. Logan Whitaker pitched two scoreless innings of relief with four strikeouts to help the Pack secure a key postseason victory over the Blue Devils.
• NC State has won eight of the past 11 weekend series against the Blue Devils.
• The Wolfpack has won its past four weekend series against Duke, winning the first two games of each of those respective sets. Duke's last series victory over the Wolfpack came in 2014, taking games one and three in Durham.

NC STATE IN THE ACC TOURNAMENT
The 2024 season marks the 14th consecutive year the Wolfpack has earned a spot in the conference tournament. Since 1980, it has only missed the tournament once.

The Wolfpack has advanced to the ACC Baseball Championship Game in two of the past three seasons, advancing out of pool play before notching victories in the semifinals to advance to the title game in 2021 and 2022. NC State fell in back-to-back championship games in 2021 (1-0, Duke) and 2022 (9-5, UNC).

NC State has won five ACC Championships in program history with its last coming in 1992. All four ACC Tournament titles for the Wolfpack have come in wins over Clemson (1973-75, 1992).

TOUGH SLATE
NC State exceled during its gauntlet of a finish to ACC play with all of its final five ACC series coming against top 15 teams in the D1Baseball Top 25 at the time of the games being played. The Wolfpack went 10-4 in its final five ACC series, winning four of those series and splitting a two-game set at No. 7 Florida State. The Wolfpack posted series wins at No. 2 Clemson and No. 10 Virginia and recorded series wins at home against No. 8 Wake Forest and No. 11 North Carolina

NC State's strength of schedule checks in at No. 4 nationally, according to warrennolan.com. The Pack's strength of schedule ranks first in the ACC. The Wolfpack has 12 wins over Quadrant I opponents. The Wolfpack is also a perfect 9-0 against Quadrant IV opponents.

SOSA SURGING
NC State freshman catcher/designated hitter Alex Sosa is hitting his stride at the perfect time, posting three multi-hit outings over his past six games played. Sosa snapped an 0-for-37 streak with a 2-for-3 outing with three runs scored, three RBI and a home run against Norfolk State on May 7. He then provided a pair of multi-hit performances in the series sweep over Wake Forest, smacking homers in victories on Thursday and Saturday. Thursday's grand slam clinched a run-rule victory for the Pack. Sosa missed almost a combined month of time earlier this season due to mono and the flu.

CAN'T STOP COOP
NC State southpaw Cooper Consiglio has dominated opposing batters over his past three outings, posting a 3-0 record with pitching victories at No. 7 Florida State, at No. 10 Virginia and at home against No. 8 Wake Forest. Over his past three relief appearances, Consiglio has tossed 12.1 innings while allowing only two runs (one earned). The left-hander has struck out 15 batters while allowing only four hits and four walks over his past three appearances, tossing a career-high seven strikeouts in the win over Wake Forest on Thursday.

STAYING ALIVE
Statistically, NC State's lineup is the toughest to strike out in the ACC, averaging a league low 6.55 strikeouts per game. The Wolfpack has only struck out 334 times in 51 games this season.

KINGS OF THE ACC NETWORK
NC State enters the ACC Tournament 6-0 in games broadcasted on ACC Network this season, highlighted by four walk-off victories against Duke, Notre Dame, North Carolina and Wake Forest. NC State looks to keep its unbeaten streak alive on ACC Network in pool play.

March 23 vs. Duke | ACCN (W, 9-8)
March 29 vs. Notre Dame | ACCN (W, 7-6)
April 13 at Clemson | ACCN (W, 4-0)
April 18 vs. North Carolina | ACCN (W, 9-8)
May 10 at Virginia | ACCN (W, 7-5)
May 17 vs. Wake Forest | ACCN (W, 2-1)
May 22 vs. Virginia Tech | ACCN (7 p.m.)
May 23 vs. Duke | ACCN (7 p.m.)

CARDIAC PACK
NC State has had a flair for the dramatic so far this season, recording its seventh walk-off win of the year against Wake Forest on Friday. Seven of NC State's 25 home wins have come via the walk-off. A list of NC State's seven walk-off wins are below:

• March 1 (W, 6-5 vs. Towson): Drew Lanphere delivers a walk-off RBI single to score Noah Soles in the bottom of the ninth.
• March 8 (W, 5-4 vs. Boston College): Garrett Pennington drops in a walk-off single with two outs in the 11th inning for the Wolfpack's first ACC win of the year. Again, Noah Soles scores the game-winning run.
• March 23 (W, 9-8 vs. No. 9 Duke): Eli Serrano III's two-out, two-run homer completes a dramatic ninth-inning comeback as NC State erases a five-run deficit to clinch the series over the Blue Devils.
• March 29 (W, 7-6 vs. Notre Dame): Luke Nixon's career night ends with a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth, clinching a series victory for NC State.
• March 30 (W, 7-6 vs. Notre Dame): Garrett Pennington crushes NC State's second walk-off homer in as many weeks with a two-out, three-run blast to complete the sweep over the Fighting Irish.
• April 18 (W, 9-8 vs. No. 11 North Carolina): After UNC plated three runs between the seventh and eighth innings to tie the score at 8-8, NC State entered the bottom of the ninth with a chance to record its sixth walk-off win of the season. Brandon Butterworth did exactly that, crushing a 2-1 offering over the left-field wall for NC State's third walk-off homer of the season. Butterworth was mobbed at home plate for what he later said in postgame media availability was the first walk-off hit in his life.
• May 17 (W, 2-1 vs. No. 8 Wake Forest): NC State clinched yet another series victory over a top-10 ACC opponent in literal walk-off fashion when Noah Soles drew a game-winning, bases-loaded walk to bring home Brandon Butterworth. Soles' RBI walk helped the Pack defeat Wake Forest ace and ACC Pitcher of the Year Chase Burns, handing the Demon Deacons just their second loss in the 14 games Burns has pitched in this season.