The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1519757
TRACKING THE PACK 18 ■ THE WOLFPACKER NUMBERS AND QUOTES Sponsored by Colony Tire & Service www.colonytire.com PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS PHOTO BY LARRY BLANKENSHIP PHOTO BY LARRY BLANKENSHIP 7th NC State's position in the Learfield Directors' Cup all-sports rankings at the conclusion of the winter athletics season. Five Wolfpack winter teams — men's and women's basketball, men's and women's swimming, and wrestling — fin- ished in the top 11 of their respective national rankings, yielding 396 points and bringing the Pack's total for the year to 606. Stanford leads the competition with 802.75 points, followed by Texas (746.5), North Carolina (733.5), Notre Dame (698), Tennessee (652.5) and Wisconsin (637.5). NC State has enjoyed broad-based success in recent years under the leadership of athletics director BOO CORRIGAN, finishing in the top 25 of the final Directors' Cup standings each of the past three years, the first time that has happened at the school. 8th NC State's spot in Charlie Crème's way-too-early women's basketball top 25 for ESPN.com. The Wolfpack may have begun the 2023-24 season unranked, but Crème envisions coach Wes Moore's squad starting out as a top-10 team in 2024-25, noting that the backcourt consisting of rising seniors Aziaha James and Saniya Riv - ers and sophomore Zoe Brooks will be back. "Finding replacements for River Baldwin and Mimi Collins inside will be Wes Moore's top priority in the off- season, but the signing of 6-5 Lorena Awou as part of a top-20 recruiting class is a good start," Crème wrote. NC State's winning score at the ACC Gymnastics Championships on March 23 at Greensboro, N.C. The Wolf- pack WOMEN'S GYMNASTICS team's score was the highest for a road meet in program history. It was also NC State's third-highest score of all time, second-highest in Kim Landrus' seven seasons as head coach and highest ever in a postseason meet. NC State outpaced Clemson (196.425) to claim its title, the eighth in program history and first since 1984. It was a good day throwing and catch- ing the football. It's a lot different when you're not just trying to figure out ways to get [Kevin Concepcion] the ball. There are a lot more things we can do with the football now on offense, so that was fun to see." — NC State coach Dave Doeren following the team's spring game, in which the starter-laden Red team threw for 429 yards It was crazy. It was It was crazy. It was really good. I'm a State really good. I'm a State fan now." fan now." — Graduate running back Jordan Waters, a Duke transfer, on the NC State men's basketball team's victory over his former school in the NCAA Tournament 197.550