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Elon
No. 10 NC State Meets Elon in a Midweek Matchup
3/9/2026 4:15:00 PM | Baseball
RALEIGH, N.C. – An in-state midweek matchup comes to Doak Field Tuesday afternoon as the No. 10 NC State Wolfpack hosts Elon at 3 p.m. and will be broadcast on ACCNX. Coming off a series win over Lafayette, NC State (14-2) has yet to lose a midweek game this season, going 5-0 in those contests. This will be game 15 of an 18-game home stand.
The Wolfpack entered the top 10 in the D1 Baseball rankings this week. It is the first time since the final poll of the 2024 season that NC State is in the top 10, when the Wolfpack ranked as high as sixth following its Omaha run.
The series finale against the Leopards marked the sixth run-rule victory of the season. In all of 2025, the Wolfpack had 10 run-rule victories.
NC State enters Tuesday's game with a 45-14 series record against the Phoenix. This will be the first meeting between the two programs since 2023, when the Phoenix came to Raleigh and won 14-6. In 1977, NC State and Elon met for the first time, seeing the Wolfpack win 7-6 under head coach Sam Esposito. In 2016, NC State won 23-3 for the largest margin of victory in the series.
This will be the first of 10 in-state opponents the Wolfpack faces this season. Last season, NC State was 9-4 against in-state opponents. Since taking over the NC State baseball program in 1997, head coach Elliott Avent has led the Pack to a 370-191 (.659) record against in-state foes.
The Wolfpack offense has continued to demonstrate its power, outscoring opponents 187-50 in the first 16 games. NC State is averaging 11.7 runs per game and leads the ACC with 36 home runs, ranking third in the nation. Chris McHugh has been one of the top hitters for the Wolfpack, batting .444 with 28 hits, six home runs, and 22 RBIs in 16 games. McHugh also leads the team with a .825 slugging percentage and a .507 on-base percentage.
The Wolfpack has shown a tendency to score early and often. NC State has scored 28 runs in the third inning and 37 runs in the sixth inning, its two most productive frames this season. The team is 8–0 when scoring first and 12–0 when leading after six innings.
The Wolfpack offense has also shown excellent patience at the plate. NC State ranks 9th nationally in walks with 110. Ty Head has 19 to not only lead NC State but is third in the ACC and eighth in the nation, following a season in which he had the sixth-most walks in program history.
The Wolfpack holds a 2.93 team ERA, which ranks 10th nationally and 2nd in the conference. Opponents are batting just .182 against the Pack, and the staff allows only 5.73 hits per nine innings, the 3rd-best mark in the nation.
The bullpen has also been effective for the Wolfpack. Danny Heintz has not allowed a run in four appearances, while Ryder Garino has thrown 8.1 scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts.NC State is the only school in the country to be ranked in the top 10 nationally in both batting average and ERA.
