NC State tops Louisville 15-10, evens series

JT Jarrett rescued NC State from itself on Saturday, both at the plate and in the field, in the process putting together what was probably the most prolific game of his career.

It’s been a rough weekend for State’s bullpen, which surrendered a 4-1 lead on Friday and then fumbled away an 8-3 lead on Saturday. The good news is that NC State only lost one of these games.

Chris Villaman entered in the fifth on Saturday with the Pack up five runs, and this was an ideal scenario all around, what with the bullpen ace capable of going long and finishing the game in to level the series while working with a comfortable lead. But Villaman struggled badly, didn’t get help from his defense, and by the time he left in the sixth, Louisville had a one-run lead.

NC State managed to tie the game back up in the eighth, and Jarrett was presented with an opportunity to alter the course of the game as he came to bat with two outs and the bases loaded. He did:

In the bottom half of the inning, he made a fantastic play up the middle to nip a potential Louisville rally in the bud and give this team’s beleaguered bullpen some much-needed confidence:

Pretty good, pretty good. Jarrett was 3-5 at the plate with six RBI, and he was one of five NC State players to hit a home run today.

(Why are we calling him “Tizzle” now? Who is responsible for this and how do we make them stop? His official nickname is “Did You Know JT Jarrett Is Link Jarrett’s Son?” and that’s how we like it!)

Lotta sizzle from the Tizzle this afternoon. Pretty important spot, too.