N.C. State held two intrasquad scrimmages at Doak Field in Dail Park in Raleigh. The first game was played on Thursday afternoon, while the second was held on Sunday afternoon.
The Wolfpack’s players were divided into two teams, Red and Black, for Thursday’s six-inning contest. The Black team walked off with a 2-1 win.
“The first game was outstanding,” head coach Elliott Avent said. “We have a good nucleus coming back. They know what to expect out of a long season with a lot of tough games and a lot of close games. We know our new guys are going to have to step up, and we saw some of that on Thursday.”
Freshman left fielder Nathan Hood hit a one-out, bases loaded single into left field off senior pitcher D.J. Thomas that scored junior center fielder Jake Fincher. Fincher’s run gave the Black team the one-run victory.
“I saw the plate a lot better than I expected to,” Hood said. “With the lefty-on-lefty matchup I had [against Thomas], I anticipated a slider. But once I saw the fastball, I turned on it and sent it into left field.”
Junior pitcher Logan Jernigan pitched all six innings for the Black team, striking out 10 batters while only giving up one run on four hits en rout to the win.
“It was a pretty successful outing,” Jernigan said. “We have some big spots to fill [in the pitching staff], but overall, we’re all coming along well.”
The Red team struck first in the top of the second, with freshman first baseman Preston Palmeiro plating freshman second baseman Markel Jones with an RBI single.
The Black team responded in the bottom half of the inning. Hood’s sacrifice fly scored freshman third baseman Andrew Knizner crossed the plate to tie the score.
Redshirt freshman pitcher Johnny Piedmonte threw four innings for the Red team, giving up one run on four hits while striking out two and walking two.
After Friday’s matchup was cancelled due to inclement weather, the teams swapped uniforms for Sunday afternoon’s seven-inning scrimmage. The Red team claimed the victory 10-4.
“Some of the returning players from last season that were supposed to make improvements haven’t done that yet,” Avent said. “This was disappointing as far as pitching was concerned.”
Junior pitcher Carlos Rodon pitched four innings for the Black team and gave up three runs on seven hits. The USA Baseball Player of the Year recorded four strikeouts on the afternoon.
“Some of my stuff wasn’t working early,” Rodon said. “My slider was a little high, and I had to work on extension and getting down in the strike zone. The last two innings I threw were pretty good.”
After the Black team tied the score at three in the bottom of the fourth, freshman pitcher Cory Wilder relieved Rodon and gave up three runs without giving up a hit in 0.2 innings. Wilder threw one strikeout, four walks and three wild pitches before giving way to freshman pitcher Cody Beckman.
Sophomore pitcher Will Gilbert threw for 2.1 innings in relief of sophomore pitcher Jon Olczak’s 3.2-inning performance. Gilbert surrendered one run on three hits and struck out five batters. Freshman pitcher Joe O’Donnell walked one batter in the seventh for the save.
The Wolfpack will host its final scrimmage on Tuesday at 4:15 at Doak Field.
