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Mikey Ryan Continues Torrid Stretch at the Plate

The Wolfpack shortstop is on fire, smashing another pair of homers against the Blue Devils.
Tucker Sennett|
Shortstop Mikey Ryan wears a hockey helmet in the dugout to celebrate hitting a home run in NC State's 10-4 victory over Duke on Friday, April 10, 2026.
Shortstop Mikey Ryan wears a hockey helmet in the dugout to celebrate hitting a home run in NC State's 10-4 victory over Duke on Friday, April 10, 2026. | Courtesy of NC State Athletics

RALEIGH — NC State is getting hot in a hurry, winning five games in a row over the last week. The latest victory came on Friday, as the Wolfpack pounded the Duke Blue Devils 10-4, riding a quality mix of power and small ball to the win. Several members of the team are starting to find themselves offensively, but no one is figuring things out as much as shortstop Mikey Ryan.

The LSU transfer was struggling mightily heading into the Notre Dame series a week ago. He turned things on against the Fighting Irish and continued that torrid work at the plate in the first of three games against Duke, mashing two home runs in the victory. Ryan never lost confidence in himself and is now starting to prove just how talented a player he is to the rest of the ACC.

Mashing and more mashing

Mikey Ryan
Shortstop Mikey Ryan runs the bases in NC State's 4-2 win over Boston College on Friday, March 13, 2026. | Courtesy of NC State Athletics

The power surge from Ryan helped the Wolfpack continue its impressive streak, which reached four games after a win earlier in the week against UNCW and then stretched to five after the shortstop's monster offensive performance on Friday. His two homers pushed his season total to eight and brought his RBI total to 24.

"I'm always pretty confident out there, but just going out there and trying to do my job for the team is what I need to do, so that's all I try to do every day," Ryan said after the win. "... (His teammates) are always just trying to pick me up and telling me to keep going."

The inconsistent start for Ryan saw him get moved to the bottom of the lineup over the last week. Coincidentally, that change helped jump-start the shortstop's offensive performance and aided the Wolfpack's late-season offensive breakout. Head coach Elliott Avent sees great potential in Ryan and that potential is starting to turn into reality in Raleigh at the right time.


"Getting to the big leagues is one of the hardest things in all of sports to do and Mikey Ryan has that opportunity. He's that talented," Avent said. "He's worked hard ever since he's been here. I told him the other day... He gets down the line almost as fast as (Trea Turner) or close to as fast as Trea."

Avent doesn't throw comparisons around without great intention, so the compliment of putting Ryan in the same category as one of the program's greats in Turner shouldn't be taken lightly. Still, the skipper believes there's another gear his current shortstop can reach.

"He's got a lot of athleticism. He's got a good swing. He's got power," Avent said. "He's just got to keep focused on how to play the game. He can still get better. The great thing about Mikey Ryan is there's a lot of room to get better."

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Tucker Sennett
TUCKER SENNETT

Tucker Sennett graduated summa cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Journalism from the esteemed Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University. A former basketball player, he has gained valuable experience working at Cronkite News and brings a deep passion for sports and reporting to his role as the NC State Wolfpack Beat Writer On SI.

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