The Wolfpacker

62 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY BRUCE WINKWORTH S uffice it to say that Brett Austin en- joys playing baseball. It certainly looks that way. NC State's junior catcher, personable and cheerful off the field, plays the game hard, and plays it with passion and enthusiasm. And he genuinely enjoys himself. "I always try to have fun when I'm playing," Austin said. "The game's hard enough. If you beat yourself up, it only gets harder, so even if you're not playing well, have fun. Maybe something good will come out of it by you having fun. It's something I like to do. I like to smile on the field. "Sometimes maybe I smile a little too much, and I've worked at backing off and locking in a little bit more, but I enjoy this game and I'm not afraid to show it." Austin has had good reason to enjoy himself during his three years in Raleigh. This season's bewildering disappointment notwithstanding, he and his junior class- mates have enjoyed a level of success un- precedented in the history of the Wolfpack program. Austin, left-handed pitcher Carlos Rodon and shortstop Trea Turner came to NC State as the headliners of a celebrated freshman class in the fall of 2011 and im- mediately helped to transform a strong pro- gram into a national powerhouse. In their first two seasons, they won 93 games and took NC State to a pair of NCAA Super Regionals and its first College World Series appearance in 45 years. The 2012 Wolfpack already had several standout players returning from the year before, but the freshman class filled out the roster nicely, with Austin, Rodon and Turner playing prominent roles. Austin, for his part, split catching duties with junior Danny Canela and saw time in right field when he wasn't behind the plate. He batted .284 with a .350 on-base percentage and a .362 slugging average, finished third on the team with 17 doubles, drove in 37 runs and stole six bases in seven attempts. The Wolfpack jumped to a quick start in 2012, winning 16 of its first 20 games and taking three of its first four ACC series. By the end of the regular season, State was 38-15, then hosted an NCAA regional on campus for just the second time, emerg- ing as regional champions but not before falling into the losers bracket and having to win a pair of nail-biting, tension-filled thrillers versus Vanderbilt. The NCAA sent the Wolfpack to top-seeded Florida for the Super Regional, and the Gators eliminated the Wolfpack in two games, leaving Austin and the rest hungry for more after a tanta- lizing 43-20 season. "My freshman year, beating Vanderbilt in the regional, I thought those were the hardest games I've ever been a part of," Austin said. "Going to Florida for the Su- per Regional and getting beat there, that hurt but we got a little taste of it. We were two games away from going to the College World Series." NC State got more than a taste in 2013. After limping to a 16-9 start overall, 3-6 in the ACC, the Pack caught fire, winning 26 of its next 30 games to enter the post- season at 42-13 with a 19-10 conference record. After winning two of three at the ACC Tournament, NC State hosted its sec- ond regional in as many years and strolled through that, and then swept Rice in the first-ever Super Regional played at Doak Field at Dail Park. The sweep of the Owls — two more excruciating, coronary-inducing thrillers — sent NC State to the College World Series for the first time since 1968, giving State its 36th victory in its last 41 games and set- ting off a wild postgame celebration on the field and then in the Wolfpack clubhouse. The trip to the College World Series itself was too short, just three games in a week's time, but that was three games and a week that Austin will never forget. "Omaha, I don't even have words to de- scribe it," Austin said. "It was a once-in- a-lifetime experience. It was the coolest experience I've ever had playing baseball. The atmosphere there was just unbeliev- able, the fans and that entire area surround- ing the stadium, it was something I'd never seen before, something you dream about." The 2013 Wolfpack finished 50-16, set- ting a school record for victories in a sea- son. Austin's contributions were significant and aren't really reflected in his final stats. Through the Wolfpack's first 29 games, he batted .339 with 14 doubles, a triple, a home run, 18 RBI and eight steals in nine attempts. He was in the starting lineup at catcher for all but four games, and wound up behind the plate in three of the other four. That's 65 games catching. Eventually, it had to take a toll. He finished the year hitting .251 with a .333 on-base percentage and a .361 slug- ging percentage. He led the team with 21 doubles and finished third with 37 RBI, but he was worn out by the time it was all over. By season's end, he had caught almost 600 of the 616 innings the pitching staff logged. Austin takes pride in being an iron man behind the plate, but after 65 games it all caught up to him. "I look back on it now and yes, I was tired," Austin said. "At the time, I didn't think I was. I take a lot of pride in catch- ing every day. I hardly ever ask for days off. I thought I was just pressing some and whatever I did just didn't seem to work. Changed a few things, still didn't seem to work. "I look back on it now and I see that catching all the innings I caught, that defi- nitely played a role. Physically I was tired and mentally I was drained, too." While his offensive numbers suffered from all the work behind the plate, Austin was there every day for his pitching staff, which was superb. In addition to Rodon's All-America season — 10-3 record, 2.99 ERA and an NCAA-leading 184 strikeouts — the Wolfpack bullpen won 31 games, saved 19 and posted a 2.57 ERA. As a staff, the Pack finished with a 3.09 ERA, third best in the ACC. Austin's body took a beating, but that was a price he paid to help his team win. "He probably lives in the ice tub [in the trainer's room], having to catch every day," Wolfpack head coach Elliott Avent said. "He's such a warrior behind home plate, and it's not easy to catch every single day like he does. His work ethic is off the charts. This game will reward you if you just keep working, and all he's ever done since he's been here is work, work, work. He just finds a way. He maximizes his time in everything he does and does a great job." When Austin, Rodon and Turner first came to NC State, all were heralded re- cruits, in part because of their draft sta- tus, none more than Austin. Turner was a 20th-round selection of the Pittsburgh Pi- rates. Rodon was a 16th-round pick of the Milwaukee Brewers and should have gone much higher. Austin, meanwhile, was tech- HAVING FUN Junior Brett Austin Enjoys Playing Baseball And Isn't Afraid To Show It Austin, a switch-hitting catcher, was behind the plate for nearly 600 of 616 innings during NC State's run to the College World Series last year and helped the pitching staff post an impressive 3.09 ERA. PHOTO BY LARRY BLANKENSHIP 62-64.Baseball's Brett Austin.indd 62 4/29/14 12:33 PM

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