Expectations surrounding the N.C. State baseball team could not have been any higher entering the double-elimination Myrtle Beach Regional last Friday. But all hopes were dashed when the Pack was sent home packing following two heartbreaking losses at the hands of Stony Brook and College of Charleston at BB&T Coastal Field.
As the No. 3 seed in the four team Regional, the Wolfpack made valiant comeback attempts, but could not overcome 7-0 and 6-0 deficits to College of Charleston and Stony Brook, respectively.
“It was a tough ending for us all,” junior pitcher Jake Buchanan said. “We all expected to go down there and get first. I thought we definitely had a good enough team, we just obviously didn’t show up for the first two games and we didn’t play the way we played the last month of the season. Overall, it was a good year, but it’s disappointing that we don’t make it out of the regional.”
Buchanan took the mound for the first game of the regional against College of Charleston (44-19) Friday night. Usually State’s most reliable starter, Buchanan struggled in the early going, surrendering three runs to the Cougars in the first inning.
Things did not get better for the native of Dallas, N.C., as the Cougars scored four more runs, only one earned, in the fourth inning to push the score to 7-0 before Buchanan was relieved by junior Nick Rice. In all, Buchanan allowed 12 hits, all of which were singles, and four earned runs.
Trailing 7-0, the Wolfpack attempted to make a comeback, scoring a pair of runs in the sixth inning off the bats of seniors Kyle Wilson and Dallas Poulk to bring the score to 7-2. Senior Drew Poulk sparked enthusiasm in State’s dugout by blasting a towering grand slam in the eighth inning to narrow the score to 8-6, but it was too little too late. The Cougars answered with a run of their own to defeat the Pack by a final score 9-6.
“Every team in the NCAA tournament is a good team so you have to play well,” Dallas said. “Things just didn’t come together like we needed them to.”
Following the tough loss to College of Charleston, the Wolfpack knew it had to beat Stony Brook (30-27) Saturday in order to keep its season alive under the double-elimination format.
Freshman pitcher Anthony Tzamtzis’ first collegiate start did not go as planned for the Pack. Tzamtzis allowed six earned runs in the first inning and was only able to record one out before being relieved by redshirt sophomore Vance Williams. State’s bullpen combined to shut down Stony Brook’s offense and did not allow another run for the rest of the contest.
Facing a 6-0 deficit after the first inning, the Pack mustered all the offense it could, but struggled against the Seawolves’ Tyler Johnson. Johnson pitched eight strong innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits to go along with ten strikeouts.
“I thought we played well this weekend,” coach Elliott Avent said. “We just had to put it all together and play extremely well, but we ran into a couple of very tough pitchers down at Myrtle Beach. Stony Brook’s pitcher was the type of pitcher we have struggled with all year. He pitched well for [Stony Brook] and has pitched well for them all year.”
Although the Wolfpack’s season did not end how it hoped, there was still reason for players and coaches to be cheerful. Senior second baseman Dallas Poulk garnered third team All-American honors for a standout season in which he helped lead the Pack to the ACC championship game and a 38-24 record overall.
“I am very happy for Dallas,” Avent said. “I am glad I had the opportunity to coach him four years. He has been a terrific player, teammate, and person, and I know he is excited with the honor. He’s meant a lot to this program and always will.”
Poulk finished his final year at N.C. State with an impressive .360 batting average, 11 home runs and 60 RBI while starting all 62 games at second base.
Even though it is an individual honor, Poulk is the first to admit that it would not have been possible without the help from teammates, coaches and fans.
“I have said this to the guys all year,” Poulk said. “It’s easy to play and do well when you have a supporting cast around you that really cares and really wants to win. So when they do well, it makes it easier for you to do well.”
