Saturday, June 8
Athens, Ga.
Noon
NC State
37-20
18
at
1
Georgia [7]
42-26
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
N.C. State
0
11
1
0
1
1
2
0
2
18
20
0
Georgia
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
4
2
Record-Breaking Second Inning Powers #Pack9 to Super Regional Victory at No. 7 Georgia
6/8/2024 4:19:00 PM | Baseball
ATHENS, Ga. – Eleven hits fueled an 11-run second inning as the NC State baseball team captured an 18-1 victory over seventh-seeded Georgia (42-16) to open the NCAA Athens Super Regional.
NC State (37-20) notches another win closer to Omaha behind its largest margin of victory ever in an NCAA Tournament game, surpassing a previous record of a 16-run margin of victory against Navy in 2016.
The Wolfpack broke open Saturday's Super Regional opener with a record-setting second inning, pushing across 11 runs on 11 hits to take a commanding 11-0 lead. The Wolfpack opened the second inning with eight straight hits, including back-to-back bunt singles from Luke Nixon and Matt Heavner to give the Pack a 1-0 advantage and reload the bases for Noah Soles.
Soles then ripped a bases-clearing double down the right-field line for a 4-0 NC State lead. Leadoff batter Eli Serrano III then hammered the next pitch for a two-run homer to extend the Pack's advantage to 6-0. Brandon Butterworth, who led off the hit parade in the second, delivered an RBI single for a 7-0 lead before Luke Nixon and Soles both each recorded two-RBI efforts apiece to bring the score to 11-0 Wolfpack.
NC State's 11 hits and 11 runs in the second inning were not only its most in a game this season, but they were also the Wolfpack's most hits and most runs recorded in a single inning in a Super Regional game in program history. Soles finished the high-scoring frame with five RBI, while freshman Luke Nixon logged three RBI in the scoring outburst.
Catcher Jacob Cozart, who was named a Buster Posey Award finalist earlier this week, stretched the Pack's lead to 12-0 with a solo homer in the top of the third. Cozart's towering solo shot cleared the scoreboard in right field for his 17th blast of the season. Cozart then smacked a two-out RBI single in the fifth for a 13-0 NC State lead.
Wolfpack starting pitcher Sam Highfill (7-2) cruised with the double-digit run support, tossing six innings while allowing just four hits and one run. NC State is now 14-2 in games Highfill has pitched so far this season.
The Wolfpack scratched across another run in the sixth before posting a pair of two-run frames in the seventh and ninth to push the score to its final margin at 18-1. Georgia scored its sole run of the game on a two-out RBI single from Corey Collins in the bottom of the fifth.
Seven of NC State's nine batters in the starting lineup recorded multiple hits. Alec Makarewicz led the Wolfpack with four hits, while Cozart and Luke Nixon each tallied three hits apiece. Soles paced the Pack with five RBI, all of which came during NC State's huge second inning.
NC State sophomore reliever Andrew Shaffner nailed down the save after closing out the final three innings. Shaffner tossed three scoreless innings without allowing a hit, striking out Sebastian Murillo to end the game.
Georgia starting pitcher Kolten Smith (9-3) suffered the loss.
UP NEXT
No. 10 national seed NC State continues its Super Regional series at seventh-seeded Georgia on Sunday. Sunday's matchup at Foley Field is set for noon and will be televised on ESPNU.
NC State (37-20) notches another win closer to Omaha behind its largest margin of victory ever in an NCAA Tournament game, surpassing a previous record of a 16-run margin of victory against Navy in 2016.
The Wolfpack broke open Saturday's Super Regional opener with a record-setting second inning, pushing across 11 runs on 11 hits to take a commanding 11-0 lead. The Wolfpack opened the second inning with eight straight hits, including back-to-back bunt singles from Luke Nixon and Matt Heavner to give the Pack a 1-0 advantage and reload the bases for Noah Soles.
Soles then ripped a bases-clearing double down the right-field line for a 4-0 NC State lead. Leadoff batter Eli Serrano III then hammered the next pitch for a two-run homer to extend the Pack's advantage to 6-0. Brandon Butterworth, who led off the hit parade in the second, delivered an RBI single for a 7-0 lead before Luke Nixon and Soles both each recorded two-RBI efforts apiece to bring the score to 11-0 Wolfpack.
NC State's 11 hits and 11 runs in the second inning were not only its most in a game this season, but they were also the Wolfpack's most hits and most runs recorded in a single inning in a Super Regional game in program history. Soles finished the high-scoring frame with five RBI, while freshman Luke Nixon logged three RBI in the scoring outburst.
Catcher Jacob Cozart, who was named a Buster Posey Award finalist earlier this week, stretched the Pack's lead to 12-0 with a solo homer in the top of the third. Cozart's towering solo shot cleared the scoreboard in right field for his 17th blast of the season. Cozart then smacked a two-out RBI single in the fifth for a 13-0 NC State lead.
Wolfpack starting pitcher Sam Highfill (7-2) cruised with the double-digit run support, tossing six innings while allowing just four hits and one run. NC State is now 14-2 in games Highfill has pitched so far this season.
The Wolfpack scratched across another run in the sixth before posting a pair of two-run frames in the seventh and ninth to push the score to its final margin at 18-1. Georgia scored its sole run of the game on a two-out RBI single from Corey Collins in the bottom of the fifth.
Seven of NC State's nine batters in the starting lineup recorded multiple hits. Alec Makarewicz led the Wolfpack with four hits, while Cozart and Luke Nixon each tallied three hits apiece. Soles paced the Pack with five RBI, all of which came during NC State's huge second inning.
NC State sophomore reliever Andrew Shaffner nailed down the save after closing out the final three innings. Shaffner tossed three scoreless innings without allowing a hit, striking out Sebastian Murillo to end the game.
Georgia starting pitcher Kolten Smith (9-3) suffered the loss.
UP NEXT
No. 10 national seed NC State continues its Super Regional series at seventh-seeded Georgia on Sunday. Sunday's matchup at Foley Field is set for noon and will be televised on ESPNU.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Highfill, Sam (7-2)
L: Kolten Smith (9-3)
S: Shaffner, Andrew (1)
Batting:
2B: Serrano III, Eli 1 ; Makarewicz, Alec 1 ; Nixon, Luke 1 ; Soles, Noah 2
HR: Serrano III, Eli 1 ; Pennington, Garrett 1 ; Makarewicz, Alec 1 ; Cozart, Jacob 2
RBI: Serrano III, Eli 2 ; Pennington, Garrett 1 ; Makarewicz, Alec 1 ; Cozart, Jacob 3 ; Butterworth, Brandon 1 ; Nixon, Luke 3 ; Soles, Noah 5
Base Running:
RUNS: Serrano III, Eli 2 ; Pennington, Garrett 2 ; Makarewicz, Alec 3 ; Cozart, Jacob 3 ; Butterworth, Brandon 2 ; Sosa, Alex 1 ; Nixon, Luke 3 ; Heavner, Matt 1 ; Soles, Noah 1
SB: Nixon, Luke 1
HBP: Nixon, Luke 1
Batting:
2B: Slate Alford 1 ; Fernando Gonzalez 1
RBI: Corey Collins 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Fernando Gonzalez 1
HBP: Tre Phelps 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
6
R
3
H
4
RBI
1
AB
6
R
3
H
3
RBI
3
AB
4
R
3
H
3
RBI
3
AB
6
R
2
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
INF
/ BaseballC
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
RHP/INF
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballINF
/ BaseballINF/OF
/ Baseball
RHP/UT
/ Baseball
OF
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