Important Observations, Stats From NC State Baseball's Brutal Friday Loss in Winston-Salem

With junior starter Ryan Marohn scratched from his Friday start against Wake Forest, NC State baseball turned to righty Heath Andrews to fill the void left by the ace's absence. Instead, the Wolfpack got dismantled by the Demon Deacons in Winston-Salem, falling in shocking fashion in the 22-1 loss to open the three-game set.

All veteran skipper Elliott Avent could do was watch his team struggle from the dugout, even after things started with promise as the Pack took a one-run lead to open the game. Wake Forest jumped all over Andrews and didn't stop there. A 10-run sixth inning secured the run-rule victory just three outs later, leaving NC State in dire need of a turnaround in the next two games.

Wolfpack lineup and stats

LF Rett Johnson: 1-3, BB, K
2B Luke Nixon: 1-3, R, BB, K
1B/RF Chris McHugh: 0-3, BB, 2 K
CF Ty Head: 2-4, RBI, K
3B Sherman Johnson: 0-1, 2 BB, K -- 3B Wyatt Peifer: 0-1, K
SS Mikey Ryan: 0-3, 2 K -- SS Christian Serrano
DH Dalton Bargo: 1-3,
RF Brayden Fraasman: 0-1 -- PH/RF Andrew Wiggins: 0-1, K -- PH Brandon Novy: 0-1, K -- 1B Quinn Bentley
C Drew Lanphere: 0-1, K -- PH/C Vincent DeCarlo: 0-1

RHP Heath Andrews: 1.2 IP, 5 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, L (3-2)
LHP Tristan Potts: IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER
RHP Danny Heintz: R, ER, BB, 2 HP
RHP Sam Harris: 1.1 IP, 2 BB, 2 K
RHP Julien Peissel: IP, 2 H, 3 K
RHP Landon Carr: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 5 R, 2 BB
RHP Collins Black: 0.1 IP, 4 H, 5 R, 1 BB, K

What went wrong for NC State?

Pretty decent time for your first 🚀 https://t.co/fFNqayM0UQ pic.twitter.com/kvuEJCBZ8h
— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) April 18, 2026

Things went wrong fast for Andrews. After a solid outing against Duke last weekend in his first Saturday start of the season, the righty allowed a solo home run in the first inning that set the tone for the rest of his outing. He loaded the bases without recording an out in the bottom of the second and Blake Schaaf hammered the ball out of the yard for a grand slam. Wake Forest never looked back.

The Wolfpack actually displayed a very solid game plan at the plate in the first inning, forcing Demon Deacon ace Chris Levonas to throw over 30 pitches right away. NC State even scored a run, courtesy of some timely hitting from Head, one of the only members of the Pack to have success at the plate. That well-thought-out approach was short-lived as the deficit grew quickly, forcing Avent's team back into swinging for the fences to keep up. It didn't work.

Personally, we love the celly 🕺 https://t.co/OsL2QXOTv4 pic.twitter.com/CMJh0F1mS9
— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) April 18, 2026

Giving up so much offense to a Wake Forest side that entered the series as a middle-of-the-road hitting team in the ACC doesn't bode well for NC State in the rest of the series. The Wolfpack used seven different pitchers in the 21-run loss, although all but Andrews threw fewer than 20 pitches. Keeping the arms from getting taxed on Friday was one of the few wins in the game.

Now, Avent and pitching coach Clint Chrysler need everything they can squeeze out of junior lefty Cooper Consiglio in a Saturday start. Consiglio gutted his way through a start last Sunday against Duke, battling blisters on two fingers. He'll need to show the same grit to change his team's fortunes on the road.

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