NC State Rides Late Rally to Win in Series Opener

RALEIGH — It was a slow start for NC State in its first Friday game at Doak Field, but the Wolfpack rounded into form as the afternoon moved along, ultimately beating Princeton 6-4 to push the record to 4-0 to start the season.

A four-run eighth inning helped the Wolfpack pull away from Princeton after a quality start from the NC State lefty ace Ryan Marohn, who racked up eight strikeouts in the victory.

Wolfpack lineup with stats

Back in Black. pic.twitter.com/Ho5tVG5TV1
— NC State Baseball (@NCStateBaseball) February 20, 2026

CF Ty Head: 1-3, 2 R, BB
DH Chris McHugh: 1-4, HR, RBI
2B Luke Nixon: 1-3, R
RF Brayden Fraasman: 1-4, R, RBI
1B Dalton Bargo: 2-4, HR, 3 RBI
SS Mikey Ryan: 1-4
C Drew Lanphere: 0-4
3B Sherman Johnson: 1-2 --- PH/3B Wyatt Peifer: 1-1, BB
LF Rett Johnson: 0-4

LHP Ryan Marohn: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, ER, 2 BB, 8 K
RHP Aiden Kitchings: 2.0 IP, H, BB, 3 K
RHP Collins Black: 2.0 IP, H, 2 R, 6 K, HR

What went down

Starting the day with a strikeout!

Ryan Marohn retires the side with three strikeouts. pic.twitter.com/s8oe8iyjjQ
— NC State Baseball (@NCStateBaseball) February 20, 2026

After Marohn struck out the side in the first inning, he ran into some trouble in the top of the second. The Tigers got some traffic on the basepaths and a balk call against Marohn moved a runner into scoring position. Princeton designated hitter Joe Montembeau knocked a single into center field, driving the first run of the game across home plate, giving his team a 1-0 lead.

The Tigers added another run in the top of the third. Johnson fumbled a double down the left field line from Tomas Cernius, which allowed Princeton shortstop Tommy Googins to score from first. Heads up baserunning from Head helped the Wolfpack cut the Princeton lead in half in the bottom half of the innings.

Heads up from Ty Head!

Wolfpack gets on the board after Head scores from third on a throwing error from Princeton. pic.twitter.com/9LId55AsxK
— NC State Baseball (@NCStateBaseball) February 20, 2026

With Marohn still cruising, the Wolfpack needed some offense to get back into the game. In the bottom of the fifth, McHugh blasted a home run to left field, tying the game at two runs apiece. Still, the offense wasn't operating at a high enough level to get Marohn a win in his second start of the season, as he finished his day with five innings of work and eight strikeouts.

Princeton hung in there with the Wolfpack deep into the game, proving it belonged with one of the stronger teams in the ACC. However, the Pack flipped the script in the eighth inning. It started with a walk and a stolen base from Head. A groundout moved him to third before Princeton intentionally walked Luke Nixon, bringing up the two biggest bats for the Pack, Fraasman and Bargo.

The first #BargoBomb at the Doak!💣 pic.twitter.com/hSs71WAgS6
— NC State Baseball (@NCStateBaseball) February 20, 2026

Fraasman snuck a single into left field to give NC State a one-run lead before Bargo blew it open with one swing of the bat. The Tennessee transfer blasted a three-run home run to right field, his third homer of the season and first at the Doak.

Princeton wasn't quite done, however. Duke transfer Collins Black gave up a two-run home run to Googins, allowing the Tigers to cut back into the Wolfpack's lead. Avent and his staff trusted Black to finish out the game in need of just one out. It proved to be a wise decision, as he struck out Cernius for his sixth strikeout of the game.

Looking for extensive coverage of Wolfpack baseball? Follow @WolfpackOnSI and @SennettTucker on X (Twitter) and never miss stories, podcasts and more.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE