Maryland
No Carolina St
NC State Baseball Downs Terrapins, 7-5
6/21/1999 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 17, 1999
RALEIGH, N.C. - Matt Postell blooped a two-run double to left field to cap a four-run seventh inning and lift NC State to a 7-5 Atlantic Coast Conference baseball victory over Maryland on Saturday night at Doak Field.
The win lifted NC State to 29-14 overall and evened the Wolfpack's ACC record at 7-7. Maryland fell to 13-18-1 overall and 4-9 in the ACC. Freshman righthander Ryan Combs (2-0) got the win with 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief. He allowed one hit, walked one and struck out two. Senior righthander Mike Ginsberg (1-2) got the loss for the Terps after yielding two runs on three hits in one inning of relief work. He walked two and did not record a strikeout.
The Wolfpack struck for three runs before Terps starter Fred Weaver could even get loose, scoring three runs on five consecutive singles to start the bottom of the first inning. Weaver trailed 3-0 after throwing just seven pitches. Brian Wright, who went 4-for-4, led off with a single to right and went to second on Brian Ward's bunt hit up the third-base line. Matt Postell singled to left to load the bases, and Andy Baxter drilled a two-run single to right field. Adrean Acevedo followed with an RBI single.
Maryland came back with two runs in the top of the second. Jason Mohap singled and Chuck Easter walked to lead off the inning, and Ray Gemmill sacrificed the runners to second and third. Mohap scored on Brian Barton's groundout to first base, and Larry Long chopped an infield hit to the left of the pitcher's mound to score Easter and make it 3-2.
The Terps came back to take the lead in the top of the fifth. Matt Swope led off with a single to right and scored on a two-out hit-and-run double to left-center by Mohap. Easter followed with a single to right to score Mohap with the go-ahead run and give the Terps a 4-3 lead.
Maryland made it 5-3 in the top of the seventh on a one-out double by Brian Patenoude and a two-out RBI double by Easter, the latter on an 0-2 pitch. That sent NC State starter Dan D'Amato to the showers after allowing five runs on 10 hits in 6 2/3 innings.
After nearly imploding in the first inning, Weaver settled down and stifled NC State through the sixth inning, retiring 16 of 18 batters from the end of the first through the sixth, but the Wolfpack rallied to take the lead in the bottom of the seventh.
Weaver issued back-to-back walks to Josh Schmitt and Luis Firgueroa leading off and was lifted after that because of a pulled muscle behind his right shoulder. Reliever Mike Ginsberg walked Todd DeMakes to load the bases with none out, and Craig Lee and Wright each singled to left field to drive in runs and tie the score at 5-5. After Ward grounded into a 1-2-3 double play, Postell blooped a double to shallow left field to drive in Lee and Wright and give the Wolfpack a 7-5 lead.
