McDonough's two homers lead offensive explosion as Wolfpack takes rubber match

NC State baseball is on some kind of a roll right now. The Wolfpack came up with another big victory Sunday, topping Wake Forest 15-8 at David F. Couch Ballpark to win the rubber match and capture the series win. 

The Wolfpack has won six of its last seven games and four of its last six ACC series. Since starting the season 4-9, NC State is 18-5. The Wolfpack also started ACC play 1-8, but now has a winning record in conference play at 14-13.

The Pack’s offense knocked Wake’s pitching around all day Sunday, with 15 runs on 20 hits. The Wolfpack homered four times against the Demon Deacons. Tyler McDonough went yard two times in a 4-for-6 day that saw him drive in four runs. Terrell Tatum also hit a three-run homer, and Austin Murr homered and drove in two in a 3-for-5 outing. 

Reid Johnston got the nod on the mound for the Wolfpack, and allowed six runs on nine hits in 6.1 innings wile striking out four and walking none. 

After the Demon Deacons took the lead with back-to-back homers in the bottom of the second, NC State went to work in the top of the third, scoring three times to take its first lead of the day. 

The Wolfpack tacked on three insurnace runs in the top of the fourth on Murr’s two-run homer and McDonough coming home on an error to push its lead to 6-2. NC State completely broke it open in the top of the sixth, pushing its lead to 12-2 on McDonough’s first homer, an RBI triple for Luca Tresh and Tatum’s homer. 

Those insurance runs proved to be important, as Wake sandwiched six runs in the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings around McDonough’s second homer, a solo shot, to make it a 13-8 game. NC State added two more runs in the top of the eighth to close out the scoring.

Next up for the Wolfpack is a mid-week tilt against Elon at Doak Field Tuesday with a 6 p.m. first pitch.