Wolfpack Clinches Series Win Over Ball State
No. 21 NC State (24-16, 12-9 ACC) took the lead in the second inning against Ball State (25-17-1, 12-9 MAC) and never looked back as the Wolfpack takes the win Saturday afternoon at Doak Field, 9-3.
Dominic Fritton (3-3, 6.89 ERA) picked up the win after striking out four Cardinals on 106 pitches while giving up one run on four hits and three walks over 5-2/3 innings. Jaxon Lucas followed with an inning of relief in which he surrendered one unearned run before Shane Van Dam finished the final 2-1/3 innings with one run allowed on two hits and one walk while striking out the last three batters of the game.
NC State’s first second-inning run came on a wild pitch from Keegan Johnson (6-1, 4.60 ERA) that allowed Alec Makarewicz score. Later in the frame with the bases loaded, Eli Serrano, III singled to drive Brandon Butterworth and Chase Nixon home. One inning later, Jacob Cozart connected on a solo home run, his 11th of the season, to make it a 4-0 lead.
The Wolfpack padded the lead further in the bottom of the fifth inning with three more runs. Josh Hogue drew a leadoff walk, moved to second and third base on a pair of wild pitches, then scored on a groundout by Makarewicz. Cozart and Luke Nixon each reached base via singles later in the frame. Chase Nixon then drove Cozart home to score with a base hit through the right side, moving his brother to third base. Chase then baited the Ball State defense into a rundown between first and second base in the next at-bat, allowing Luke to score before the inning ended.
Hunter Dobbins broke Fritton’s shutout bid in the top of the sixth inning with his 14th home run of 2024. One inning later, Houston King would follow suit with an inside-the-park home run, cutting NC State’s lead to 7-2. As a result of colliding with Serrano on the play, Hogue would leave the game.
Chase Nixon would answer the Cardinals’ runs after the seventh-inning stretch with a two-run double that drove Butterworth and Luke Nixon home. The final run of the game would come in the top of the eighth as King drove Grant Miller, Dobbins’ pinch runner after a leadoff double, home with a base hit through the right side.
The Wolfpack will look to secure the series sweep over Ball State during Sunday’s inaugural Victory Over Cancer Game. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.