‘We got there.’ NC State overcomes injuries, challenges to reach NCAA Super Regional
Logan Whitaker took the mound Sunday to start the game for N.C. State and outfielder Noah Soles more or less ended it with a home run in the ninth.
Pretty fitting, too.
Whitaker and Soles both were sidelined by troublesome injuries in a Wolfpack baseball season that had several players miss time. The two seniors both returned to be a vital part of the Pack’s late-season resurgence and now a spot in an NCAA Super Regional.
With a 5-3 victory Sunday over James Madison, the Wolfpack neatly finished up its business in the NCAA Raleigh Regional. Doak Field was loaded and it was loud as the Pack took victories over Bryant, South Carolina and then JMU – a 1-2-3 sweep, if you will.
“It was really cool to do it at home,” NCSU coach Elliott Avent said. “Our fans are so passionate.”
The Wolfpack (36-20) next will head to Athens, Georgia, for the best-of-three Super Regional against Georgia (42-15), the No. 7 national seed in the NCAA tournament. Game 1 will be Saturday at noon at Foley Field, which can squeeze in about 3,800 fans for NCAA games.
Game 2 will be played at noon Sunday. If a Game 3 is necessary, it will be Monday.
In an interesting twist, it will be Georgia’s first Super Regional appearance since 2008, when the Bulldogs faced N.C. State in Athens and won in three games.
The Pack, the No. 10 national seed this year, lost starting pitcher Matt Willadsen to an arm injury in preseason practice. It lost outfielder Josh Hogue to a broken fibula and pitcher Shane Van Dam also hurt his pitching arm.
All were gut-punches for Avent, personally, and his team, collectively. But Whitaker’s return from an illness that caused a dramatic weight loss, and Soles from ankle surgery have provided a big boost, solidifying the starting pitcher rotation and giving the Pack another good bat and added experience in the lineup.
“No doubt it was a tough, tough year for a couple of us,” Whitaker said Sunday. “But as coach says, it’s not necessarily how you start. It’s how you finish.”
Avent had to smile when Soles ripped a solo homer to right in the ninth. The Pack left 16 runners on base Sunday against the Dukes but Soles touched ‘em all in giving N.C. State a 5-3 lead with an insurance run that had the feel of the clincher as Wolfpack fans thundered.
Avent was not happy when Soles flipped his bat high into the air Friday after a homer against Bryant. Neither were the umpires. Soles gently put his bat down Sunday.
The Wolfpack is an example of the new-age college sports team, an amalgam of recruits and transfers, of older players who have experienced the good and bad on the field – and the COVID-19 pandemic – mixed in with freshmen who have found their way to contribute during a first college season.
Or a sophomore such as Smith, who pitched three innings as a freshman last season and has emerged as an overpowering closer for this year’s team.
“It’s about having roles defined and people accepting their roles and not getting sour, because everyone wants to play,” Avent said. “Figuring out roles is a tough thing.”
Third baseman Alec Makarewicz, named the regional’s most outstanding player, spent four years at East Carolina before graduating and looking to use his last year of college eligibility at another school. Avent said Sunday he was good friends with ECU coach Cliff Godwin and didn’t want to poach away a player, but couldn’t pass on Makarewicz after meeting with him.
“We needed a corner guy, a third baseman,” Avent said Sunday.
The Pack got a third baseman and a switch-hitter who has hit .379 with 20 homers, both team highs.
“Stupid numbers,” Avent said.
Makarewicz said he had some “loud outs” in an 0-for-5 day against South Carolina, but then a homer and RBI-double against JMU to help clinch the regional.
“I just wanted to come out here and give our guys a chance to win,” he said.
The Wolfpack is two wins away from a trip to Omaha, Nebraska, and the College World Series. They’ll need to go through Georgia, in Athens, to do it.
The Bulldogs are 32-5 at home this season, beating Georgia Tech 8-6 in 10 innings on Sunday to close out the Athens Regional. Sophomore Charlie Condon was the SEC player of the year and the 6-6 third baseman is the projected No. 1 pick in the MLB Draft. Condon hit .500 in the regional and was walked five times.
But Avent likes the look and feel of his team, especially given the trials of the regular season that brought it closer together.
“Sometimes, you get there. Sometimes, it’s hard,” Avent said. “We got there.”
This story was originally published June 3, 2024 at 1:23 PM.
