WILMINGTON — Down 1-0 with just one hit to that point in the game, the NC State baseball team broke through in a big way in the fourth inning against UNC-Wilmington at Brooks Field Wednesday night.
The Pack (26-6, 11-4 ACC) tallied six runs on six hits in the frame, highlighted by a three-run blast from sophomore shortstop Will Wilson, his eighth of the season. It was that big inning which propelled the Wolfpack to an eventual 8-3 victory, but that is becoming the new normal for this NC State team that is now a consensus top-five team.
“That was a big inning,” said senior outfielder Josh McLain, who tallied two hits and two RBIs in the game. “We started hitting. We started rolling. Hits are contagious and everything just kind of rolled in our hands. It was a big inning.”
On 16 different occasions this season, including the fourth frame Wednesday, NC State has plated four or more runs in a single inning. In games that the Wolfpack has at least one of those big innings, it is 10-1. The ability to plate runs in bunches has been a huge factor in the offensive success for the Pack, which leads the ACC in runs per game.
“You got guys that are seeing the guy at the plate and get a hit, they’re coming over and telling us what he’s throwing,” Wilson said. “The next guy’s got an idea what’s coming next. It just piles on. You start to get a guy down; like I said hits are contagious. You just keep rolling and rolling and rolling.”
That ability to pile on was on full display this past weekend, in a huge series win on the road at ACC opponent Louisville. After dropping the series opener, the Pack entered the ninth inning of game two down 6-5. That’s when the big inning came for NC State.
The Pack plated four runs in that final frame to come from behind and win 9-6, eventually winning the series to stay flawless in ACC series on the season. Junior outfielder Brett Kinneman delivered the big blow in that game, clearing the loaded bases with a double.
“Definitely a big thing, especially when you talk about the Louisville game.” Wilson said. “We just put the bat on the ball and scored the runs to win the game. Same thing here, it’s just like that.”
The big innings keep piling on for the Wolfpack, but it isn’t something the Pack focuses on according to head coach Elliott Avent. While the big innings always help to win games, Avent says he channels a different philosophy learned from the NCAAs all-time leader in wins, former Texas coach Augie Garrido, who passed away earlier this year.
“That’s always big, but we don’t really have that philosophy,” Avent said. “Augie Garrido always told me ‘try to score in four different innings.’ If you can score in four different innings, one of those is liable to be a crooked number; a big inning, which is four runs or more. Which is what we try to do.”
Regardless of the philosophy, NC State is putting up big numbers in bunches this season, and it is something that could pay off well in the end. The Pack has fallen apart in winner-take-all regional finals three years in a row, but this team is proving to be a special one. If the Wolfpack can continue to pile on runs in bunches, it will never be out of a ballgame; something that could prove useful once June comes around.
