Posted by Heather Dinich
Editor's note: ESPN.com's Heather Dinich will check in frequently with updates from the Raleigh (N.C.) Regional. For live scores throughout the NCAA tournament, click here.
NC State 5, South Carolina 4
RALEIGH, N.C. -- NC State's twisty winding road to a 5-4 come-from-behind win over South Carolina on Saturday night started and ended with second baseman Dallas Poulk.
Poulk, the Wolfpack's leadoff hitter, hit a home run to right field on an 0-2 count in the first inning to give NC State the 1-0 lead, and his diving catch for the third out in the ninth inning assured his team another game in the winner's bracket.
"I'll take it any day," Poulk said. "The emotion -- so much emotion in this game -- most of the plays in the day for everybody were pretty not routine, pretty amazing plays."
In between Poulk's clutch moments, NC State got solid pitching from Clayton Shunick, a game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the seventh from Marcus Jones, and poise from several role players who were thrust into important and emotional situations.
Devon Cartwright came in to left field when Jeremy Synan was ejected in the bottom of the fifth and threw Parker Bangs out at home plate in the top of the sixth. Domonique Rodgers took over in right field and made a diving catch in the ninth inning. Shunick had his splitter working and struck out eight batters, allowing just two earned runs in 6.1 innings.
"He competes by keeping his emotions in check," NC State coach Elliott Avent said. "He's going to pitch for a long time, I gotta feeling."
In the bottom of the seventh, Marcus Jones singled to right center, driving in Matt Payne for the 5-4 lead. It was one of two pitches South Carolina's Nick Godwin said determined the game.
"A couple of times you get caught up in the emotion of the game," Godwin said. "You think you're going to blow someone away, but you really don't have the stuff to and instead you leave it hanging over the plate. They made me pay a couple times.
"The biggest thing, we get a lead and I come out in the sixth and get an 0-2 lead and then plunk [Jones] in the numbers. That was probably the biggest pitch of the night … the 0-2 pitch to the leadoff batter and that 0-2 in the sixth were the biggest pitches of the night."
The Gamecocks (89-52) lost for the first time in an NCAA regional since 2006. If No. 2 seed South Carolina is going to win this region, it will have to win its next three games.
"It ain't gonna be easy, but it's not supposed to be easy when you get into the losers' bracket," South Carolina coach Ray Tanner said. "These guys are young; They can be tired next week sometime."
Notes:
• If the Gamecocks are fortunate enough to play two games on Sunday, Tanner said he will use two catchers. It's possible Kyle Enders will start the first game at 1 p.m. ET since Phil Disher just played in a night game. Sophomore right-hander Blake Cooper will be the starting pitcher.
• South Carolina right fielder Harvey Lail, who was injured on Friday when he slid into the fence for a foul ball, didn't start for first time in 60 games. Andrew Crisp took Lail's place in the outfield and the No. 8 spot in the lineup. Lail is listed as day-to-day with a bruised knee.
"He might be able to play," Tanner said. "He surprisingly was out for infield tonight. I didn't expect to see him in infield after we started. He wasn't 100 percent -- it was a little bit tight -- but he doesn't have anything broken. He may try to play tomorrow. We'll just have to wait and see."
• NC State cleanup hitter Jeremy Synan was ejected after he struck out looking -- the last out in the bottom of the third. The call by home plate umpire Ken Eldridge elicited boos from the crowd and a nose-to-nose conversation between Avent. Synan was escorted out of Doak Field by the tournament director and replaced in left field by Devon Cartwright.
"I don't think we're supposed to talk about ejections," Avent said. "I know, and I think Kenny Eldridge knows. We've got our own opinions, but I don't think I'm supposed to comment on that."
ESPN.com Staff
