The Wolfpacker

July 2014 - Football Preview

The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports

Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/337646

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 136 of 163

JULY 2014 ■ 135 squad in the first round of the NCAA Tour- nament, but that did little to damper enthu- siasm about a 25-8 campaign. Moore was named the ACC Coach of the Year by ESPN.com and was selected as a finalist for the Naismith Coach of the Year award. ■ Individual Male Performance Of The Year NC State sophomore basketball forward T.J. Warren put on some of the greatest scoring displays in ACC history during the season, but not even that can top what red- shirt sophomore heavyweight wrestler Nick Gwiazdowski accomplished March 22 in Oklahoma City. Gwiazdowski entered the wrestling cir- cle an underdog against Minnesota's Tony Nelson, the two-time defending heavy- weight national champion and the top seed in the tournament. Gwiazdowski appeared to be in trouble when he was unable to escape from Nelson in the second round, giving Nelson 2:00 of riding time. Nelson escaped from Gwiazdowski's hold to start the third and final period and took a 1-0 lead with a point for riding time still pending. In need of a takedown, Gwi- azdowski quickly grabbed one for two points to take a 2-1 lead. Then with 21 seconds left in the match, Gwiazdowski was awarded two more points for a second takedown. Nelson would get a point for riding time, but that did not matter. Gwiazdowski had a 4-2 win and captured the national championship. ■ Individual Female Performance Of The Year Efficient is the adjective that best de- scribed Wolfpack senior basketball center Markeisha Gatling this past season. She made 66.3 percent of her shots from the field, more than six percentage points higher than the next nearest eligible ACC performer. Her high-percentage offensive game was on full display when NC State hosted No. 12 LSU Dec. 20. Gatling made 11 of 13 shots from the field for 25 points, helping State upset the Tigers 89-79 in a game that was one of the first signals that Moore's squad was going to be better than expected. Gatling was named the ACC Player of the Week by both the league and College Sports Madness for that performance. ■ Breakout Female Performer Of The Year Gymnastics coach Mark Stevenson was excited about Brittni Watkins almost from the moment she stepped on campus last year. As a sophomore, Watkins showcased why her coach was a strong believer in her. Watkins was named a second-team reg- ular-season All-American in the all-around competition by the National Association of College Gymnastics Coaches. She became the second Wolfpack gymnast to receive All-America honors. Taylor Seaman in 2010 was the first. Watkins was also named the 2014 East Atlantic Gymnast League Gymnast of the Year. She led the conference in RQS score in the vault, floor and all-around during the year. She also was named the league's Gymnast of the Week four times during the season. The rising junior will aim for even greater accomplishments in 2015. ■ Breakout Male Performer Of The Year It's easy to forget that coming out of high school in the 2012 class, baseball catcher Brett Austin and not left-handed pitcher Carlos Rodon or shortstop Trea Turner was the most highly touted and drafted player in NC State's recruiting class. Austin was selected by the San Diego Padres in the supplemental first round of the 2012 MLB Draft. It is rare for players picked that high not to sign with the major league club and instead choose to go to col- lege, but Austin did just that. For two years though, Austin took a backseat in the spotlight to Rodon and Turner, who anchored NCSU's College World Series run in 2013 and were first- round locks entering 2014. Yet it was Aus- tin who would arguably be the most consis- tent performer of the three this past season. He led the team with a .344 batting av- erage, 74 hits and five triples, and his 12 doubles tied for the most on the Pack. His THE BEST AND THE BRIGHTEST Head coach Wes Moore's women's basketball squad was picked to finish 10th in the ACC, but achieved a fourth-place showing in the league en route to 25 victories and a berth in the NCAA Tournament. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN 134-137.Year End Superlatives.indd 135 6/26/14 4:51 PM

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of The Wolfpacker - July 2014 - Football Preview