After a whirlwind of cold weather caused Friday and Saturday’s games to be cancelled, NC State softball took on Syracuse in a doubleheader on Sunday, dominating both games and outscoring the Orange 15-1 in the two combined matches.
Both games showcased NC State’s ability to bounce back after losing five-straight games. The team’s offensive prowess was on full display as it put up high numbers and spread the wealth of hitters around the diamond.
Game 1: NC State 5, Syracuse 1
The game started off rocky with an early throwing error, allowing Syracuse to be the first on the board, but once the Pack gained its footing, the game was sealed.
Freshman infielder Lily Livingston launched her eighth homer of the season to give the Wolfpack a 2-1 lead in the top of the third, making her rounds and allowing senior centerfielder Maia Townsend to come home as well. The Pack finished the inning with three hits and two total runs, not allowing Syracuse to put up a fight and stranding three of its runners on base.
The fourth and fifth innings were stagnant as neither team tacked on a run, with Livingston knocking the only hit for both sides on a single to third.
The sixth inning was Syracuse’s turn for sloppy plays as the team managed two separate errors in which the Pack took full advantage. Senior utility player MaKayla Marbury got the ball rolling as she went 3-for-4 from the batter’s box to pick up her 100th career hit on a single to left field. Freshman infielder Carly Short followed in her footsteps as she hit an RBI-single which allowed Marbury to strike again, upping the lead 3-1 and getting the game back in full swing. Freshman utility player Morgen Talley kept Syracuse from matching the Pack as she closed out the inning with her seventh strikeout of the day.
The top of seventh proved to be as lively as the sixth as sophomore infielder Kendall Simmers homered to deep center field with an RBI-double, causing Livingston to score once again and extending the Wolfpack’s edge to 5-1.
Game 2: NC State 10, Syracuse 0
The Wolfpack went into game two with better footing than the first as the team started hitting early and never looked back.
In the top of the first, Simmers’ RBI-as the Pack drew first blood. More hits followed as Talley grounded out, Marbury reached on a fielder’s choice and Livingston scored off a head-first dive, advancing the lead to 2-0 out of the gate. Senior pitcher Rylee Wyman kept the Orange from scoring all throughout the first and in the rest of the innings to come.
The Pack broke through in the third inning with five hits. With a single from Simmers, Talley’s bombshell homer to left field — her ninth long ball of the season — and senior utility player Hannah Church’s RBI-single, the Pack advanced the lead to 5-0.
The highlight of the day came in the fourth inning from sophomore infielder Taryn Massey with a three-RBI double, encapsulating a five-run frame and punctuating NC State’s 10-0 lead.
Syracuse never recovered and the game ended in the fifth in a run rule.
The Pack returns to Doak Field on Thursday, April 2 at 7 p.m. to face off against rival UNC-Chapel Hill.
