NC State downs Maryland, adcances to Sweet 16

Sports

TECHNICIAN

PAGE 11 • MONDAY, MARCH 19, 2018

NC State downs Maryland, advances to Sweet 16

Jake Caccavaro

Staff Writer &

Kailee Jurnak

Correspondent

The NC State women’s basketball team defeated former ACC rival Maryland 7460 on Sunday at Reynolds Coliseum in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to secure the Pack’s first Sweet 16 appearance since 2007.

NC State (26-8, 11-5 ACC) held the Terrapins (26-8, 12-4 Big Ten), who entered the game averaging 80 points per game and ranking 10th in the nation in 3-point shooting, to 20 points below their season average and zero made 3-pointers.

“All year long, this group has just battled,” head coach Wes Moore said. “Really proud of them.”

NC State started hot during the first quarter, with a 3-pointer from redshirt junior guard Kiara Leslie, playing against her former team, putting the Pack up 12-4 early in the first. After the Wolfpack stretched its lead to 18-9, two free throws at the end of the quarter from Maryland guard Ieshia Small put the score at 18-11 to end the quarter.

With the score at 20-13 in favor of the Wolfpack a minute into the second quarter, Leslie stole the ball and drove coastto-coast for a layup then did the exact same thing, snagging a steal on defense and euro-stepping around the Maryland defender for the layup to push the Wolfpack lead to 24-13.

The Terrapins responded with an 8-0 run to narrow the score to 24-21. The teams would then trade buckets for the rest of the quarter, with the Wolfpack leading 32-26 at the end of the half.

With the Wolfpack’s lead evaporating early in the third quarter, senior forward Chelsea Nelson drove to the lane for a layup that kickstarted a 19-4 NC State run and essentially put the game away.

The Wolfpack closed out the third quarter with three 3-pointers in a row, one from sophomore guard Aislinn “Ace” Konig and two from freshman guard Kai Crutchfield, to put the Pack up 56-40 at the end of the quarter.

With the Wolfpack up 56-42 and Maryland fighting to get back into the game, Konig drilled a 3-pointer and the Wolfpack forced a turnover on the defensive end leading to a Nelson layup that gave the Wolfpack its largest lead of the game, 61-42.

Maryland scratched and clawed its way to get back into the game, cutting the lead down to as few as 11 points, but two quick buckets from senior center Akela Maize and redshirt sophomore guard Kaila Ealey put the Wolfpack up an insurmountable 15 points with 3.5 minutes to play.

Leslie was excellent on the defensive end, holding Maryland’s leading scorer, guard Kaila Charles who averages 18 points per game, to just four points on 2-of-8 shooting and forcing her to foul out late in the fourth quarter. Leslie attributed her defensive performance on Charles to her knowledge of Charles’s tendencies.

“I knew she likes to drive right,” Leslie said. “So I tried to sit on her right hand and give her a little bit of space.”

In an all-around superb defensive performance, Konig completely shut down Maryland’s leading 3-point shooter, Kristen Confroy, holding her scoreless. Confroy hit 76 3-pointers on the season and Konig harassed her the entire game, consistently chasing her off the 3-point line and limiting Confroy to zero 3-point shot attempts.

NC State head coach Wes Moore was effusive in his praise of Konig’s and Leslie’s defense.

“Ace likes challenges like that,” Moore said. “Great job defensively by those two.”

Leslie scored 21 points on 7-for-14 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds, leading both teams in both categories.

Konig and Ealey rounded out the double-digit scorers, with 12 points apiece.

NC State’s two seniors, Nelson and Maize, were obvious with their excitement about advancing to the Sweet 16.

“[Advancing to the Sweet 16] means a great deal to us,” Maize said.

The Wolfpack will be playing in its first Sweet 16 game since Kay Yow was the coach of the team. Moore recognized that Yow would appreciate this iteration of the Wolfpack’s run.

“I think she’d be proud of this team,” Moore said.

Knowing the Wolfpack will likely take on last year’s national championship runner-up Mississippi State, Maize was adamant that the Wolfpack won’t back down.

“Whether we’re the underdog or we’re on the top, it is the same fight.” Maize said.

NC State will take on Mississippi State or Oklahoma State in the Sweet 16 on Thursday or Friday.

NICHOLAS FAULKNER/TECHNICIAN Redshirt junior guard and former Maryland player Kiara Leslie shoots free throws on the technical foul committed by Maryland’s Brianna Fraser. Leslie had a career day with a double-double, leading all players in both points and assists with 21 and 11 respectively. The Wolfpack won 74-60 in Reynolds Coliseum on Sunday and will advance to the Sweet 16.

Baseball team proves it is for real

Ethan Barry

Staff Writer

The NC State baseball team completed a three-game sweep over the Clemson Tigers this weekend in perhaps the Pack’s most impressive weekend of baseball since qualifying for the College World Series in 2013. Let’s take a look at what it means moving forward.

Better than good

The Wolfpack was 11-2 heading into conference play, which is very good, but the competition wasn’t very strong. NC State took two out of three from Boston College last weekend, which is what good teams are supposed to do, but it’s not a spectacular performance. Heading into Clemson, we knew the Pack was good, and definitely an NCAA tournament team, but how good? Top 25? Top 10? The Wolfpack dominated the consensus top-10 Tigers throughout the weekend, to prove the team deserves top-10 consideration. Sweeping any ACC series is a difficult task, let alone on the road. Against a top-10 team on the road? Head coach Elliott Avent can’t ask for anything more from his team.

Versatility and depth on offense

The Wolfpack wasn’t going to score nine runs per game in the ACC like it did in nonconference play. It’s been evident this team can hit for power, but sometimes it won’t be able to wait around for the threerun homer, and have to play small ball. NC

Sports

TECHNICIAN

PAGE 12 • MONDAY, MARCH 19, 2018

NC State softball falls in rubber match against Georgia Tech

Camden Speight

Correspondent

NC State softball (15-11, 3-5 ACC) went 1-2 in its weekend series against Georgia Tech (16-9, 5-1 ACC) at Shirley Clements Mewborn Field in Atlanta, Georgia.

The Pack was outscored 10-4 in three games, including getting shut out on Friday and Sunday due to excellent pitching from Georgia Tech.

On Friday, sophomore pitcher Devin Wallace pitched well, but the Wolfpack was unable to get the bats going, losing a low scoring game 3-0. NC State had only four hits including two by freshman second baseman Chandler Gardner.

NC State’s bright spot was a 4-2 win on Saturday behind a complete game from Wallace. Also in that game, Garner hit a sixth inning three-run home run to take the lead and ultimately give NC State the come-frombehind win.

Sunday’s rubber match, however, was similar to Friday. NC State had only four hits again. Freshman starting pitcher Kama Woodall gave up five runs on eight hits over 5.1 innings that led to a 5-0 loss.

Sunday is only the third time that NC State has been shutout this season, showing how dominant the pitching was for Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets’ main pitcher, Emily Anderson, pitched 16 innings giving up only 10 hits and one run against the Pack.

The pitching was also good for the Pack in all three games, especially with Wallace on the mound who has pitched 99 innings already this season while giving up only 34 earned runs. Wallace has shown why she’s the number one pitcher on the roster and the Pack will need her continued success going deeper into ACC play.

On the offensive side, NC State struggled mightily against the Yellow Jackets’ pitching. Garner was the only spark at the plate, going 5 for 9 with three huge RBIs in the second game to pull out NC State’s only victory. She has the Pack’s highest batting average on the season at 0.317 including five home runs on the year.

The Pack will look to right the ship in its upcoming games. The team is 3-6 in its last nine games and is being out-scored 29-48 during that period.

NC State softball will be back in action on Wednesday at Dail Softball Stadium, where the Pack is 9-6 on the season. The team will face off against UNC-Charlotte at 5 p.m.

BRANDON LANG/TECHNICIAN Freshman infielder Chandley Garner gauges an East Carolina University pitch during game one of the doubleheader in Dail Softball Stadium. The Wolfpack would win the game 8-1 before tying the second 3-3 on Oct. 6.

Future bright for Keatts, NC State after promising first season

Nick Sinopoli

Assistant Sports Editor

The Wolfpack (21-12, 11-7 ACC) fell to No. 8-seed Seton Hall, 94-83, in the round of 64 in the NCAA Tournament. The Pack allowed the Pirates (22-12, 10-8 Big East) to shoot 61.3 percent from the floor in the first half for a 51-41 lead at halftime.

However, NC State would not go down quietly.

Graduate guard Allerik Freeman was masterful in his final collegiate game. The Charlotte native scored 22 points on 7-of-12 shooting in the second half on his way to a career-high 36 points. As the game neared its end and the Pack’s loss was inevitable, Freeman was visibly emotional as the enormity of the moment hit him.

While the loss was difficult to swallow for Freeman and the Wolfpack, the transfer from Baylor left NC State in good hands as the 2017-18 season concludes.

In his up-and-down final year of eligibility, Freeman emerged as the Pack’s leader on the court, leading the team in scoring — and in marquee games.

Freeman stepped up against No. 2 Arizona, No. 10 UNC-Chapel Hill, No. 25 Florida State, Louisville and the rematch against the No. 21 Tar Heels, most notably with a 29-point outing in Chapel Hill on 7-for-7 shooting from the 3-point line.

In a season where the rebuilding Pack was picked to be a bottom feeder of the ACC, Freeman lifted NC State to a year full of pleasant surprises and plenty of upsets.

Thanks to the veterans’ scoring (16.1 points per game) and ability to take over in games, the Pack’s bridge to the future is easier.

While senior forwards Lennard Freeman and Abdul-Malik Abu and graduate guards Sam Hunt and Al Freeman depart the team, head coach Kevin Keatts’ blueprint for NC State will become clearer next year.

Keatts will implement his patented fourguard scheme more often next year thanks to incoming recruits and transfers.

NICHOLAS FAULKNER/TECHNICIAN Graduate guard Allerik Freeman leans back to make the pass to senior forward AbdulMalik Abu. The Pack was unable to pull off the comeback after the lackadaisical first half to fall 91-87 to Boston College on March 7 in Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Sports

TECHNICIAN

PAGE 13 • MONDAY, MARCH 19, 2018

Pack sweeps Clemson, sits atop ACC

Alec Sawyer

Assistant Sports Editor

Sophomore shortstop Will Wilson homered twice as the No. 24 NC State baseball team wrapped up an impressive sweep of No. 10 Clemson with a 5-4 win Sunday at Doug Kingsmore Stadium in South Carolina.

Wilson started the scoring off for the Pack (18-3, 5-1 ACC) with a first-inning blast, and added his second homer of the game, and sixth of the year, in the eighth inning to push the Pack ahead 5-4 for the win.

Clemson (16-4, 3-3 ACC) was able to tally just five runs in the three-game series, as the Wolfpack pitching staff shined throughout the weekend. The one negative for the Pack on the mound was the absence of graduate righty Johnny Piedmonte (2-0, 4.58 ERA), who didn’t start after exiting his game last week after 1.2 innings.

On Sunday, freshman lefty Nick Swiney (2-0, 2.45 ERA) started for the Pack in Piedmonte’s place, allowing three earned runs on three hits and two walks in his one-plus inning of work. After Swiney, the Wolfpack used four more pitchers to get through the game, highlighted by redshirt senior Joe O’Donnell (1-1, 1.12 ERA) who picked up the win with three scoreless innings.

For the Tigers, lefty Jake Higginbotham started, giving up four runs and two hits over five innings. Righty Ryan Miller was the losing pitcher, allowing the home run to Wilson in the eighth inning.

The Pack and the Tigers exchanged home runs in the first inning, as Wilson launched an 0-1 pitch over the fence in the NC State half of the frame and Clemson’s Logan Davidson answered with a homer of his own.

The Tigers jumped ahead to a 3-1 lead in the second inning, taking advantage of a leadoff walk followed by a double to chase Swiney from the game.

NC State answered in the third inning, tying the game at 3-3 with a two-run blast off the bat of senior outfielder Josh McLain, his second of the year.

Tigers catcher Kyle Wilkie doubled in a run to grab a 4-3 lead for Clemson in the fourth inning, his second RBI of the game. The Tigers took advantage of an NC State error that extended the inning, and Wilkie delivered.

An RBI groundout off the bat of sophomore catcher Brad Debo tied the game at 4-4 in the sixth, and then Wilson delivered the game winner in the eighth with one out.

With the sweep, NC State sits alone atop the ACC as the only team with a 5-1 record through six games. The Pack now gets a full week off, returning to Doak Field next week for a series against Georgia Tech.

SINDY HUANG/TECHNICIAN Sophomore infielder Will Wilson prepares to bat during the game against UNC-Asheville on Wednesday in Doak Field at Dail Park. The Wolfpack beat the Bulldogs 6-2 for its 15th win this season.

KEATTS

continued from page 12

The Pack replaces Al Freeman with redshirt sophomore guard Devon Daniels, a former freshman standout from Utah who shot 57.1 percent from the floor and nearly averaged 10 points per game. Redshirt junior guard C.J. Bryce will also join after sitting out a year due to NCAA transfer regulations after leaving UNC-Wilmington to follow Keatts. Don’t forget freshman guard Blake Harris, who transferred from Missouri midseason.

Daniels and Bryce should make immediate impacts and flourish in Keatts’ system. The 6-foot-5 guards along with redshirt junior Torin Dorn and sophomore Markell Johnson round out the crowded yet talented backcourt.

However, replacing Abu, Lennard Freeman and possibly sophomore center Omer Yurtseven could be challenging.

Derek Funderburk, a former 4-star prospect, freshman from Ohio State and Hargrave Military Academy product, is the most promising big, but recruits like Ian Steere and Immanuel Bates should see time in the paint. Uncertainty in the frontcourt will rise if Yurtseven chooses to declare for the NBA Draft after his considerable development in his second year at NC State.

Though dreaming about what’s in store in the years to come is rousing, this year Keatts and his staff got the most of out a team inherited from former head coach Mark Gottfried just one season prior, especially sophomores Johnson and Yurtseven

Johnson surfaced as the No. 1 facilitator of the Wolfpack’s offense after serving behind Dennis Smith Jr. in his freshman year, and missing seven games due to facing a felonious assault charge this season. The Cleveland, Ohio, native posted five straight games of recording 10-or-more assists, breaking Chris Corchiani’s program record. He also often rose to the occasion against tough opponents, scoring 20 points and dishing 11 assists in an upset of the Heels in Chapel Hill.

Keatts transformed former 5-star recruit and struggling freshman big Yurtseven into a matchup nightmare in conference play.

The Turkish center’s well-rounded offensive game has moved him into professional conversations. Yurtseven looked bewildered and confused on the hardwood in his freshman campaign, and that nervous energy changed into confidence in his sophomore year.

The 7-footer drilled shots from beyond the arc and in the midrange, and held his own in the paint with obviously improved post maneuvers and hook shots on his way to six 20-point outings.

The substantial development of Johnson, Yurtseven and the rest of the Pack yields encouraging signs to what is in store for a team filled with Keatts’ preferable talent, especially considering the milestones he garnered in his first year at the wheel: -Five top-25 wins -Made the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2015 -Finished 4-1 on Tobacco Road. Keatts became the first coach since Tal Stafford in the 1918-19 season to defeat Duke, UNC and Wake Forest in his first attempt -Won 11 ACC games. Tied for the most regular season conference wins in a coach’s first year since Everrett Case won 11 in the 1946-47 season -Tied for third in conference standings, the best mark for the Pack since the 200304 season

Building on these achievements puts the Wolfpack in good standing as it transitions into a new era. With three transfers, five recruits and counting entering the fold in Keatts’ second season, the future is bright in Raleigh.

Sports

TECHNICIAN

PAGE 14 • MONDAY, MARCH 19, 2018

BASEBALL

continued from page 11

State hit five home runs this weekend, but those only accounted for six runs. The Pack manufactured the rest of them. Wolfpack hitters had seven sacrifice plays to either move runners up or bring them in, and six of those resulted in a run being scored. That’s a good sign for when the Pack offense hits a slump, which it inevitably will. The other good sign is that of the Wolfpack regulars, senior outfielder Brock Deatherage has the lowest batting average at .295. That’s ridiculous. Not many teams have that kind of depth one through nine in the batting order, and that’s without the leadoff hitter from the last two years.

Pitching answers the bell

We knew the Pack could hit, but how would the pitching handle ACC offenses? Based on this weekend, quite well. Clemson scored five runs in three games after scoring 117 runs in 17 games, or 6.9 per game. The Tigers had three extra base hits this weekend, all on Sunday, after averaging almost three per game to start the year. That’s answering the bell. NC State still needs to find a Sunday starter so it doesn’t have to take away pitchers from the fantastic bullpen, but the bullpen is good enough to win a game per weekend for the Pack. If Avent can get quality starts on Friday and Saturday from sophomore Michael Bienlien and senior Brian Brown, NC State will win many ACC series.

Help still on the way

If you needed any more good news, the Pack has reliable veterans on their way back from injury. Graduate pitcher Johnny Piedmonte didn’t pitch this weekend after struggling the last two weekends, but this was likely related to his back issues and not his performance. The Pack needs him to be healthy in May and June, but you never know when his back may flare up, as it did this weekend. If he gets healthy and stays healthy, he will start on Sundays and Avent will have his weekend rotation.

Redshirt junior Austin Staley has yet to pitch this year due to injury, but assuming he comes back at some point, which we have no reason to believe he won’t, he will add another experienced and trusted arm to an already stout bullpen.

Senior second baseman Stephen Pitarra hasn’t played since opening weekend due to a hamstring injury which required surgery. He was given a four-to-six week timetable at the time, and this weekend marked the four week mark since his surgery. If he hasn’t had any setbacks, he should be back either this coming weekend or the next. Three weeks away is a trip to Louisville and Avent will want to get him some at bats before that showdown. Adding him back to the mix, likely as the leadoff hitter, adds another guy who is an on-base machine to a team that already has a .425 OBP.

SINDY HUANG/TECHNICIAN Junior outfielder Brett Kinneman runs to first base during the game in Doak Field at Dail Park on March 2. The Wolfpack beat the Bowling Green Falcons, 11-1, for its ninth win this season.

Moving forward and handling success

The Pack has had a dream start to this season, at 18-3 and 5-1 in the ACC. It’ll appear in the top 15 of most polls which come out on Monday. However, if the Pack doesn’t beat teams it is supposed to beat, it’s going to be a frustrating season. NC State should win every remaining series at home, starting next weekend against Georgia Tech. To do that, this team has to keep its head down and keep working hard. It’s played with a chip on its shoulder, and it needs to continue to do that, no matter what the polls say. If NC State does that, it’s well on its way to having the best season since 2013, when the Pack advanced to the College World Series.

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PAGE 15 • MONDAY, MARCH 19, 2018

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