When it comes to Boston College, the struggle is real for NC State

On the surface, losing an emotional game at Fenway Park to Boston College and a pair of one-run games is not the end of the world for N.C. State’s baseball team.

Of course, it’s not good for the Wolfpack (20-20), in general, to get swept by the last-place team, or specifically, for its NCAA tournament chances. It’s not terribly surprising, either. This is what happens when N.C. State plays Boston College in a major sport.

For whatever reason, the Wolfpack can’t beat the Eagles, not in this academic calendar anyway. Boston College ended a 12-game ACC losing streak in football with a 21-14 win at Carter-Finley Stadium on Oct. 30. The Eagles won the lone meeting in basketball, too, 74-66 on Jan. 11 in Chestnut Hill.

The problem for N.C. State is Boston College isn’t very good against other ACC teams. For some reason, the Eagles see red and turn into their best version.

You had to figure N.C. State would get a better effort from BC than UNC did on April 8-9. The Tar Heels swept BC and outscored the Eagles 48-14.

Both sides were emotional for Saturday’s game at the iconic home of the Boston Red Sox. That was the sixth annual ALS awareness game, with both BC (Pete Frates) and N.C. State (Chris Combs) playing for former standout players afflicted with ALS.

BC scored four runs in the first inning in an 8-3 win. N.C. State’s bats were shut down in a doubleheader on Sunday back at BC’s on-campus field. The Wolfpack lost 2-1 and 1-0.

N.C. State entered the weekend at No. 37 in the RPI. The sweep at Boston College dropped the Pack back to No. 63 in D1baseball.com’s RPI.

The best news for N.C. State’s baseball team? Boston College would not be in the newly formatted 12-team ACC tournament field (May 23-28 at Louisville), if it started today.

The bad news? N.C. State is one of five 8-13 teams that could be caught by either Boston College (6-15) or Georgia Tech (6-15).

This story was originally published April 24, 2017 at 12:54 PM with the headline "When it comes to Boston College, the struggle is real for NC State."