NC State softball drops first two games of 2024 season at NFCA Leadoff Classic

With a new head coach and young roster, NC State softball traveled down to Clearwater, Florida for its first games of the season while playing at the NFCA Leadoff Classic. The first day of competition saw the Pack take on Iowa and Missouri in a doubleheader. The Wolfpack fell to the Hawkeyes 2-0 in its season opener and suffered a 13-0 loss to the Tigers. 

Iowa 2, NC State 0

The official first game of the season saw the Pack (0-2) take on and fall 2-0 to the Iowa Hawkeyes (2-0) in a matinee matchup. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Rylee Wyman got the start in the circle for the red-and-white but was relieved by sophomore right-handed pitcher Madison Inscoe after the second inning.

Both teams were held scoreless for the majority of the game. Iowa had a few scoring chances throughout the matchup, including a close call for the Wolfpack in the bottom of the second inning. 

Wymann tallied her first strikeout of the season as she started working her way out of a bases-loaded one-out jam. She shut the door on the Hawkeyes by forcing a groundout sophomore shortstop MaKayla Marbury tallied the third and final out with a forceout at second.

Iowa got on the board at the bottom of the sixth inning off of a single to left field which sent two Hawkeyes past home plate. Despite not scoring, NC State tallied five hits throughout the matchup with redshirt sophomore first baseman Michele Tarpey leading the team with two.

Missouri 13, NC State 0

Redshirt senior right-handed pitcher Aisha Weixlmann took to the mound for the Pack against the Tigers (2-0) but was replaced after 2.1 innings. Weixlmann gave up 3 hits and granted two free bases that turned into a quick five runs for the Tigers. Missouri did not waste any time at the plate, quickly taking a 9-0 lead after four innings headlined to two home runs and a handful of extra-base hits. The red-and-white eventually fell 13-0 to the Tigers through five innings. 

NC State only tallied one hit throughout the matchup, courtesy of Tarpey in the bottom of the second. Freshman right-handed pitcher Carly Maxton, who made her collegiate debut, replaced Weixlmann in the circle during the third inning. She was no match for the buzzing Mizzou offense though, who didn’t go easy on the freshman in her first start, tallying four hits against Maxton in her time in the circle. 

Missouri finished the win off by preying on another freshman, tallying another five hits and four runs in the final inning. Right-hander Kayla Fekel was no match for the Tigers’ offense, who recorded a trio of RBI hits to rub salt in the Wolfpack’s wound.

The Pack had significant trouble getting on base. With only one hit throughout the night, the furthest a NC State player got was to second base. After eventually seeing four more runs from the Tigers, and being down 13-0, the game ended for the Wolfpack after only five innings.

The season is still young and there is plenty of time for the team to learn to mesh with new head coach Lindsay Leftwich, who came to the Pack after 12 years with LSU’s softball program. NC State will stay in Clearwater for three more games. The next matchup for the Pack is on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 10 a.m. against Missouri State.