Logan Whitaker of the N.C. State Wolfpack celebrates his game-ending strikeout against the Duke Blue Devils in the 11th inning during the ACC Baseball Championship at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)
DURHAM, N.C. – It took N.C. State’s Jacob Cozart a while to get his bat going against Duke Tuesday evening.
Cozart went 0-for-4 through the first nine innings, before his one-out single up the middle in the top of the 11th inning scored LuJames Groover III, put N.C. State back on top in the nightcap at Durham Bulls Athletic Park in the nightcap on the first day of the ACC Baseball Championship.
The ninth-seeded Wolfpack edged fifth-seeded Duke 8-7 in 11 innings after the Blue Devils’ relief pitching and persistent offense bedeviled N.C. State, propelling an improbable comeback in a game that saw Duke trail by six, only to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth.
In the top of the first, N.C. State got a lead off walk from Noah Soles, and then took a 2-0 lead over the Duke Blue Devils when the next batter, third baseman LuJames Groover III, blasted a two-run homer. A batter later, Cannon Peebles singled and chased Duke starter Aidan Weaver from the game.
In the second, Duke reliever Adam Boucher walked leadoff batter Parker Nolan. Kalae Harrison followed with a double, scoring Boucher, and Harrison would score three batters later on a single by Groover for a 4-0 N.C. State lead.
With Owen Proksch, Duke’s third pitcher of the night on the mound to start the third frame, Trevor Candelaria and Eli Serrano III led off the inning with consecutive walks. Candelaria was promptly driven home by Nolan, who singled to left, and then Harrison followed with a double off the right field wall, scoring Serrano and giving N.C. State a 7-1 lead, ending Proksch’s evening.
But once Jason White came in to relieve Proksch, Duke settled down, getting 6.2 innings of no-hit ball from White, Charlie Beilenson, and Fran Oschell III, who combined to allow just two baserunners – both on walks – in that span. The N.C. State bats, which had produced six hits and seven runs to that point, were silenced.
Duke battled back, getting a two-out, two-run single from Tyler Albright in the bottom of the fourth, and cut the Wolfpack lead to three in the sixth when Albright’s single to shallow left field scored Stone to make it 7-4.
In the top of the seventh, Alex Mooney reached on a one-out single and scored on Stone’s third hit of the game.
Duke’s Devin Obee came to the plate to pinch hit for Luke Storm and, with a two-strike count and a runner on first, he blasted a fastball from N.C. State’s down the left field line at Durham Bulls Athletic Park and deep into the night. Obee hopped down the line, channeling Carlton Fisk and waving the ball fair, only for it to be ruled foul.
The ruling held up after video review, and though Duke loaded the bases after Damon Lux was hit by a pitch and drew Alex Mooney an intentional walk, Andrew Fischer looked at a 3-2 fastball from N.C. State’s Dominic Fritton to end the Duke threat.
In the bottom of the ninth, MJ Metz turned on a fastball a bit early, and as the ball flew to right field, he sprinted to first and pointed to the sky with his right hand.
“Go! Go! Go!” he yelled, as his opposite field fly ball carried over the fence in right center field to draw Duke into a 7-7 tie with N.C. State in a game where they had trailed by six runs early.
After the homer by Metz, Tyler Albright reached on an error by N.C. State shortstop Kalae Harrison, and advanced to second on Cole Hebble’s infield hit. But that was all the offense Duke could muster.
Two innings later, leading once again after Cozart’s RBI single, N.C. State’s Logan Whitaker retired Duke in order, striking out Albright to end the game.