DURHAM BULLS ATHLETIC PARK: Clemson came out on top of NC State 7-6 in a back-and-forth affair that featured six lead changes, five double plays, a hitting streak extended, a winning streak snapped, three wild pitches, two batters plunked, two outfield assists, a suicide squeeze, a safety squeeze and a call overturned on replay all stuffed into three hours and 23 minutes, Thursday.
Tigers closer Lucas Mahlstedt put on a gutsy performance, throwing 60 pitches over the final four innings to pick up the win and lead Clemson to the semifinals.
Clemson scored in a variety of ways, plating the first run on a sacrifice fly and the final run on a fake bunt and slash single from Andrew Ciufo. Ciufo showed bunt but pulled the bat back and slapped the ball past the Wolfpack third baseman to drive in an insurance run in the eighth. The Tigers also executed a pair of squeeze plays to produce runs in the fifth inning. Jacob Jarrell homered and drove in three runs, but Clemson wouldn’t have advanced without executing when called upon.
The Tigers racked up 16 hits, but just two of those went for extra bases. Cam Cannarella (4-for-5) extended his hitting streak to 17 games and raised his average to .343. There were some oddities in the game, such as Cannarella reaching base four times but never advancing past second. Also, Clemson and NC State combined for 34 baserunners, but the bases were never loaded at any point.
Both pitching staffs had to deal with high-pressure situations as the Tigers had a batter reach base in all nine innings. NC State had a batter reach in the second through the seventh innings. The Wolfpack were accustomed to spoiling leads, having come from behind a league-best 19 times in the regular season. In the end, however, Mahlstedt was up to the task, stranding runners in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings.
Clemson had dropped five out of six to NC State dating back to last year, including three in a row this season, before Thursday’s quarterfinals matchup. The Tigers have seemingly snapped out of their late-season funk, having won five straight heading into their semifinals showdown with top-seeded Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets advanced earlier Thursday with a 10-3 win over Cal.
Head coach Erik Bakich didn’t want to reveal his thinking on who will get the start, Saturday, but did mention freshman lefthander Talan Bell as a possibility. Georgia Tech will likely throw Brady Jones, who threw five scoreless innings against the Tigers on March 29th.
First pitch between Clemson (43-15) and Georgia Tech is scheduled for 1 p.m., Saturday.
Box Score
ACC Championship bracket
