NC State baseball beats Pittsburgh. Wolfpack will face UNC in ACC championship game
Less than 30 minutes before first pitch and N.C. State fans had taken over Truist Field in downtown Charlotte. Rows and rows of fans wearing red almost flowed into the street as they waited to pile in.
Wolfpack fans took almost every seat in the lower section of the stadium, waiting for something special to happen. They weren’t disappointed.
N.C. State hit three home runs in the first inning, setting off fireworks long before sunset. The hot-hitting Wolfpack knocked off Pittsburgh, 8-3, in the second semifinal of the ACC tournament, setting up a title game showdown with rival UNC. The Tar Heels defeated Notre Dame 7-2 in the first game of the day.
“It felt like a home game out there playing, just at a different field,” N.C. State pitcher Canaan Silver said. “We appreciate all that they (the fans) do.”
Sunday’s showdown will mark the second straight trip to the title game for N.C. State (36-20) which lost to Duke, 1-0, a year ago. The Pack will be going for its sixth title.
The Wolfpack, which made it to the College World Series a year ago, has not won an ACC title since 1992.
Record setting day for White
Tommy White, the ACC Freshman of the Year, was the second of three N.C. State players to hit a home run in the first inning.
White’s shot over the right field wall gave him his 27th home run of the season. That shot broke the NCAA record for home runs by a freshman. Head coach Elliott Avent said the honor probably means more to him than it does to White. Avent felt like the record, which was set in 1990, would never be broken in this era.
“It’s amazing to me,” Avent said, handing White extra bottles of water to hydrate. “He’s been amazing.”
White admitted the latest honor hadn’t set in.
“I haven’t really processed it yet,” White said. “I mean, it’s cool, but I want to win a championship and help the team win.”
White hit three home runs in N.C. State’s 9-6 win over Miami.
Devonte Brown, the leadoff hitter for the Pack, started the game with a solo shot. Not to be outdone, White hit one toward the highrise apartments overlooking Truist Field, making it 2-0. Two batters later, Dominic Pilolli hit a two-run shot out of the stadium, giving N.C. State a commanding 5-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fourth, Pitt intentionally walked White, drawing boos from the capacity crowd. White has been intentionally walked in every game of the tournament.
State stays in control
Pittsburgh (29-27) got back in the game in the top of the fourth, getting a two-run double from Brock Franks. After keeping N.C. State scoreless for two innings, Pitt couldn’t contain the Pack in the bottom of the fourth.
With the bases loaded, Brown scored on a LuJames Groover III pop up. Noah Soles drove in two more runs with a single to left field to make it 8-2.
The Panthers made it interesting in the top of the sixth, loading the bases after a single from Jack Anderson. Canaan Silver, N.C. State’s starting pitcher was done for the day after 5.2 innings. Silver struck out seven batters before turning the game over to sophomore Justin Lawson.
Put in a tough spot, Lawson came out on top, forcing a pop out to center field from Jeffrey Wehler, leaving the trio of Panthers stranded.
Ron Washington, Jr. got Pitt back on the board with a solo home run in the top of the seventh. Washington’s home run was the 57th of the tournament, extending the record.
The previous record was 51 set in Greensboro in 2010. That was one thing the Panthers could celebrate Saturday as everything else was going N.C. State’s way. By that time, most fans in red were making their way to the exits, heading out early in preparation for Sunday’s big showdown.
The Pack has now won 14 straight games against Pitt. N.C. State currently projects as a No. 2 seed in the Greenville Regional next weekend.
“The ACC is obviously one of the top leagues in the country every year,” Avent said. “This year it seems to be better than its every been from top to bottom. I’ve said this so many times, since the doubleheader at Florida State (March 18-20) this team has grown tremendously, gotten better. This team is a team that win a regional, win a super regional and then go back to Omaha.”
This story was originally published May 28, 2022 at 8:58 PM.
