NC State takes down UNCG, 3-0, behind Villaman’s gem

In the sweep of UNC this past weekend, NC State found what it had been lacking to this point in the season: consistent quality starting pitching. It found it in abundance in taking all three games from the Tar Heels, and it found it again - to an even greater extent - on Tuesday in a 3-0 win over UNC Greensboro.

Second-year freshman Chris Villaman toed the rubber for the Wolfpack on Tuesday evening and proceeded to turn in an absolute gem of a performance: a complete game, one-hit shutout against a UNCG squad that had topped nine runs in a game eight times already this season. Villaman’s final line: 9.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 9 K.

Almost most impressive was that Villaman continued to get stronger as the game progressed. All nine of his strikeouts occurred from the 4th inning on, including five K’s over the game’s final three frames.

State scratched their first run of the game in the 3rd inning, the only run they would need in the game. Austin Murr reached on a one out walk, advanced to 3rd base on a Tyler McDonough single, and then scored on a Jonny Butler sacrifice fly.

The Wolfpack added insurance runs in the 8th and 9th innings.

In the 8th, Luca Tresh reached on a one out double and scored two batters later on a Jose Torres single. Vojtech Mensik led off the top of the 9th inning with a triple into the left field corner and would score one batter later when JT Jarrett bounced a single over third base with the infield in.

No NC State hitters tallied multiple hits on the day, but three Wolfpack hitters reached base safely multiple times: Tyler McDonough (1-4, BB, SB), Luca Tresh (1-4, 2B, R, BB), and Jonny Butler (1-1, RBI, 2 BB, SF, SB).

The Pack return home this weekend for a three game set with Clemson. First pitch Friday is slated for 7:00pm on the ACC Network.