Facing an uphill battle June 6, the NC State Wolfpack won one of two games it needed against Coastal Carolina, before ultimately falling to the Chanticleers, 7-5, in a rain-delayed, dramatic contest that stretched over two days.
“They’ve done everything we could have possibly asked of them and more, it just didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to today,” Wolfpack associate head coach Chris Hart said. “What they have accomplished throughout the year is incredible. They’ve stuck together and played hard from day one until now.”
The Wolfpack entered June 6 needing to win both games to advance, while a loss in either would send the Chanticleers to the next round. After dispatching the Chanticleers in blow-out fashion earlier in the day, the Wolfpack nearly pulled out a victory that night, but rain postponed the game with the Chanticleers down 5-3 with the bases loaded and one out in the ninth inning.
“It was raining pretty hard to that first hitter in the ninth, and I tried to go out and talk to the umpires about it at that time, but the decision was to keep playing,” Hart said. “We’re not making excuses by any means; it’s just an unfortunate way to play a last inning before a Super Regional. Obviously, we’d all like to play in good conditions, but it’s baseball and sometimes weather plays a factor.”
The game resumed June 7, and sophomore reliever Evan Braband induced a run-scoring ground out to bring Coastal to within one out of elimination. However, he hit the next batter on a 0-2 count and suddenly found the bases loaded when he was one strike away of the Pack advancing.
The next batter, second baseman Seth Lancaster, singled into right field on a sinking liner that sophomore Brock Deatherage nearly snagged on a diving attempt. The hit gave the Chanticleers a 6-5 lead, and they would add another run in inning before senior closer Mike Morrison shut the door on the Pack’s season.
It was a gut-wrenching way to lose the season for the Wolfpack, especially because it seemed as if the game would’ve gone its way if it had been finished the night before.
“It was a roller coaster of emotions, the whole weekend pretty much. We scored and took the lead, and it kind of felt like that was the break that we needed,” junior first baseman Preston Palmeiro said. “Not saying that the rain had anything to do with it, but sometimes after a 12-hour break things can change a little bit. It’s disappointing, but that’s baseball and that’s how it goes sometimes.”
Trailing 3-2 in the sixth inning, the Wolfpack loaded the bases with no outs off of sophomore reliever Bobby Holmes. After a strike out, sophomore third baseman Evan Mendoza hit a one-hopper to short that nearly ended the inning. Instead, first baseman Kevin Woodall’s foot was off the base, allowing the tying run to score and the inning to continue.
Immediately after, Palmeiro laced an RBI single through the left side, giving the Wolfpack a 4-3 lead.
The Wolfpack added an insurance run in the eighth inning on an RBI single by Mendoza, who finished 1-5 but had two crucial RBIs that appeared to have propelled NC State to the victory.
However, as torrential rain fell on the players in the ninth inning, sophomore reliever Cody Beckman couldn’t get a grip on the ball, and the bases were loaded by the Chants on two walks and a weak infield single before the game was suspended. The rest is history.
“I’m not going to make excuses for anything, but it does have an effect on the game,” Beckman said. “It’s harder to get a grip on the ball, and it’s hard to make good pitches.”
Coastal Carolina took the lead on a two-run home run by junior shortstop Michael Paez in the top of the first inning, a shot to right field that seemed to carry well farther than it should have.
The homer came off of sophomore lefthander Brian Brown, who was making his second start of the Regional on only two days’ rest. Brown lasted four innings, giving up three earned runs off of seven hits.
The Wolfpack struck in the bottom of the second inning on junior catcher Andrew Knizner’s RBI single through the right side of the infield, drawing the score to 2-1.
Coastal pushed that lead to 3-1 in the fourth on an RBI ground out and State would bring it back to a one-run deficit with a clutch two-out double by sophomore center-fielder Josh McLain down the third base line.
From there it was a battle of the bullpens and NC State’s bullpen was dominant until the final inning. The combination of sophomore Beckman, senior lefty Travis Orwig and freshman right-hander Austin Staley combined for four innings of scoreless relief, holding Coastal to just one hit while striking out seven batters until the ninth.
Weather and NCAA rulings again reared its head in the contest as the game was delayed an hour and 35 minutes prior to the first pitch and then another 40 minutes in the fifth inning. The final rain delay was the most inconvenient, with the bases loaded and one out in the ninth inning.
Wolfpack head coach Elliott Avent was not in NC State’s dugout for the contest and will not be eligible to coach next year’s opener after he was suspended two games by the NCAA for his outburst in Game One of the doubleheader. Avent was ejected for arguing balls and strikes and the NCAA ruled his prolonged arguing after his ejection caused his suspension.
Avent commented about his suspension, stating, “I’m disappointed for my players that I wasn’t able to lead them in tonight’s game. I love my players, and I couldn’t be more proud of how they responded earlier today. They know I’ll fight for them, and I regret not being in the dugout tonight.”
So ends the 2016 campaign for the Wolfpack, who went down for the second straight year in heart-breaking fashion. So begins a long and tortuous offseason of what-ifs for players and fans alike. Coastal Carolina will play on, with a berth to the College World Series on the line.
Sophomore pitcher Evan Brabrand delivers a pitch in pouring rain in the Wolfpack's fifth game of the NCAA Raleigh Regional against Coastal Carolina at Doak Field on June 6. Brabrand pitched the last 2 outs of the season-ending 7-5 loss to the Chanticleers.