With four home runs in just six innings, NC State baseball made its 17-4 victory over Sacred Heart look more like batting practice rather than a competitive baseball game.
The Wolfpack (8-1) jumped ahead in the first inning and never looked back. While the Pack only batted six times, it put up multiple runs in four different innings. The Pioneers (1-6) tried to punch back with a three-run homer in the fourth inning, but laid down in defeat afterwards as NC State battered Sacred Heart with a barrage of runs.
“It’s really awesome to have a team like we have,” said junior left fielder Andrew Wiggins. “To have the offensive guys like we have day in and day out be able to hit… bench or not, we can all hit, we have the skills to do that. So when you get your opportunity just have fun and let it ride.”
The Wolfpack has now scored 62 runs over its past three games — the second-most runs in a three-game stretch in NC State history. While the level of competition is worth considering, there’s no denying that the entire lineup top to bottom is capable at the plate. NC State is in the unique position of having too many good players and not enough starting spots.
“For the first time in my 30 years here, I think everybody on this team could earn a starting job,” said head coach Elliott Avent. “We got a team that everybody can play, and that’s the disappointing part cause everybody’s not gonna play.”
One player that stepped up on Friday is junior designated hitter Sherman Johnson. Starting the day off with a home run, a triple and a single, Johnson nearly completed the cycle. With a walk and the run-rule in effect after seven innings, Johnson finished with three hits and three RBIs.
“He’s a good player,” Avent said. “The game can take things away from you mentally, and it can make you sharper mentally. Sherman seems to be that guy that the game is good for him… He handles the game and he’s just trying to get better.”
Stepping in midgame after starting on the bench, Wiggins impressed at the plate. Taking over in the lineup for senior right fielder Brayden Fraasman, Wiggins blasted a three-run homer in the fifth inning. With a pair of walks and four RBIs, Wiggins’ performance is a statement that shows how impactful the Indiana transfer can be.
“It’s just a lot of fun,” Wiggins said. “Every time you get in the box it’s a chance to compete, every pitch, every pitcher. It’s really fun for me, so any opportunity I get to do that, I just try to do the best I can, do it for my team.”
Elsewhere, the Wolfpack’s lineup showed no weakness. Sophomore center fielder Ty Head and sophomore shortstop Mikey Ryan both hit home runs, junior first baseman Chris McHugh earned three hits and junior second baseman Luke Nixon totaled three RBIs.
“Everyone’s producing, not just a couple guys,” Nixon said. “Last year we got in a lull of just a couple guys producing, but this year all of our hitters, all 16 of them are producing.”
On the mound, junior pitcher Ryan Marohn put together a respectable performance. Mowing down the Pioneers’ hitters with three strikeouts to open the afternoon, Marohn arrived locked in and delivered. The win marked Marohn’s second, while he added six strikeouts to his season total.
Closing out the game, freshman pitcher Sam Harris impressed in the final three innings. Harris pitched mistake-free, allowing no hits and only giving away one walk. With two strikeouts, Harris showed potential to be an important pitcher out of the bullpen for the Pack, even as a freshman.
“My mindset’s always it’s 0-0,” Harris said. “I gotta go in there and I gotta hold them and do the best possible job I can do.”
NC State will return to the diamond on Saturday Feb. 28 for a 2 p.m. matchup with Sacred Heart, available via ACC Network Extra.
