The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1364233
MAY/JUNE 2021 ■ 9 TRACKING THE PACK Home is where the howl is. Join today at go.ncsu.edu/AAMembership #HowlBack PACK PERFORMERS Ross Dant, Swimming At the NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving National Championships held March 24-27 in Greensboro, N.C., Dant was the lone Pack male swimmer to win a pair of All-America honors to help NC State finish in eighth place as a team. The native of Hickory, N.C., started the meet by qualifying for the A-finals and finishing in eighth place in the 500 freestyle. The sophomore then concluded with a third- place showing in the 1,650 free with the second-fastest time ever at NC State (14:31.17), trailing only former national champion Anton Ipsen (14:24.43). Melissa Evans, Volleyball Evans, a senior from Porter Ranch, Calif., became the first NC State volleyball player to be named a four-time All-ACC honoree when she made the first team for the first time in 2020. Evans' 3.97 kills per set this year ranked second all time for a single season at NC State in the rally scoring era, while her 1,189 career kills were the ninth most ever for the Wolfpack. Evans was also named to the East All-Region team by the American Volleyball Coaches Association. Nick Gwiazdowski, Wrestling The former two-time NCAA champion heavyweight finished second at the United States Olympic Wrestling Team Trials to earn a spot on the U.S. national team for the fourth straight year. Gwiazdowski will also serve as an alternate for the Olympic Games this summer in Tokyo. The Duanesburg, N.Y., native is two-time bronze medalist at the World Championships (2017 in Paris and 2018 in Budapest) and was a four-time All-American in college, the last three with NC State after transferring in from Bingham- ton. Angie Rizzi, Softball A fifth-year senior from Tuckahoe, N.Y., Rizzi was flirting with a historic .400 season through April 18. In 35 games and 95 at- bats, Rizzi boasted a .400 batting average, and she also had belted eight homers while scoring 32 runs and driving in 26. At the time, Rizzi was tied for second in the ACC in runs, sixth in bat- ting average and tied for seventh in homers. No Wolfpack player has ever batted .400 in a season, and her .779 slugging percentage would rank second highest in a single season for a Wolfpacker.