The softball team defeated Maryland 7-6 Sunday afternoon at Dail Softball Stadium.
The game was the final home ACC contest for the softball team. Four Wolfpack seniors were honored in a pre-game ceremony, but Senior Day was almost ruined by the Terps.
What looked like a close game on paper was really a Wolfpack blowout, followed by a ferocious Terrapin comeback.
State got three runs in both the third and fourth innings to lead 6-0. Sophomore pitcher Lindsay Campana pitched six solid innings, and the Pack held the lead for the entire game until the top of the seventh inning.
Maryland was then sparked by five hits and a State error to come all the way back to tie the game 6-6.
“Today’s game was much, much too close for me,” coach Lisa Navas said. “I think the kids were relaxed a little bit in that last inning [instead of being] tough for every pitch. So that hurt us a little bit.”
But that relaxation didn’t last as the team came out in the bottom of the seventh trying to come back.
After a Terrapin error gave the Pack a runner on first base, senior first baseman Lisa Nentwig came through with a single to left to put runners on first and second.
Then, senior shortstop Shanna Smith came to the plate. Smith had an outstanding statistical weekend, posting four home runs, six runs batted in, five walks and six hits — all in three games.
But at that point, the Terps had seen enough of Smith and walked her for the third time in the game to load the bases with two outs.
That brought yet another senior to the plate. Left fielder Ashleigh Davis singled off the Maryland shortstop’s glove to give the Pack the walk-off 7-6 victory.
“It’s a big win for us. We just kept battling,” Smith said.
After Senior Day, the senior players said they realized how close they are to the end of their road.
“I’m going to miss it a lot. I think it’s going to sink in when we finally have our last home game here,” Smith said. “But I love N.C. State, and I love this program. [I’m] just going to take the memories that I have and move forward.”
Davis had similar sentiments.
“It’s surreal. It feels like we finally got on the field, and it seems like we’re already having to leave it,” she said.
Although it was Senior Day, the Pack still has 10 games to go in the regular season. State stands at 25-20 and 8-7 in the ACC. The players said they are looking forward to the postseason.
“This one was huge in regards to [the fact that] Maryland was ahead of us in a lot of ways,” Navas said. “We’ve really worked on getting better every game and getting tougher as we’ve gone through … The kids are more poised and going out there and hitting the ball. Shanna Smith just had a remarkable weekend, and if she can keep that up, we’re good to go.”
