The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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16 ■ THE WOLFPACKER TRACKING THE PACK Simonas Bilis, Men's Swimming The junior from Panevezys, Lithuania, en- tered the 2014-15 season with high expec- tations after capturing the ACC title in the 100 freestyle and notching honorable men- tion All-America honors in the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle. In NCSU's first dual meet of the season Oct. 18 in Raleigh, Bilis won the 50, 100 and 200 freestyle events to propel NC State to an upset over No. 5 Georgia. His 200 time of 1:37.02 was No. 1 in the country at that early stage of the season. Bilis was named the ACC Male Swimmer of the Week after his performance. Curt Britt, Baseball Britt transferred into NC State from South Carolina during the offseason, and the right-handed pitcher could prove to be a valuable addition to the Pack pitching staff. The native of Laurinburg, N.C., is eligible to pitch right away despite transferring, and he posted strong results at NCSU's Fall World Series. In his one appearance, Britt gave up just three hits and one earned run while walking no one and striking out five bat - ters in five innings. Last year, Britt went 3-0 with a 2.35 ERA in eight games, including two starts. He struck out 19 batters in 23 innings. David Cooke, Men's Golf NC State's first fall tournament of the season was a successful one, with the Pack taking home first place in a nine-stroke win at the Wolfpack Intercollegiate held at NCSU's Lonnie Poole Golf Course Oct. 6-7. Leading the way for NCSU was Cooke, a junior. The native of Bolingbrook, Ill., and former Purdue transfer picked up his first career tournament title by tying for first after shooting a career-best 67 in the third and final round to post a three-round five-under-par scorecard. Cooke's individual triumph is the 87th in school history and gave the Pack its 51st-ever team championship. Kaitlyn Kearney, Volleyball The freshman middle blocker from Frisco (Texas) High was an all-state performer as a senior in high school and has seen her talent translate to the ACC. She became the first conference volleyball player this year to earn consecutive ACC Freshman of the Week honors when she was tabbed Sept. 15 and 22. The 6-2 Kearney leads the Pack with 90 total blocks and 209 kills, while starting the first 20 matches thus far this season. Her 1.18 blocks per set average ranks just outside the top 10 in the ACC. Joanna Thompson, Women's Cross Country NC State's women's cross country team climbed from No. 29 to No. 18 in the UST - FCCCA Division I Cross Country National Coaches Poll that was released Oct. 21, and a major reason why has been the running of Thompson. The senior from Knoxville, Tenn., helped State finish second at the Notre Dame Invitational Oct. 3 in South Bend, Ind., by finishing in third place overall. She then led the Pack by placing 12th at the Indiana State Pre- National Invitational Oct. 18 in Terre Haute, Ind., to help the team finish fifth out of 43 squads. ■ PACK PERFORMERS QUOTING THE PACK "I think we're really close. There are a lot of indicators, there are a lot of small victories within the losses that you see improvement. The bottom line is we need to be more consistent. There are a lot of plays that we're leaving on the field, whether we're right there to make a sack, we're an inch away from it, or we break up a pass, it goes off our hands instead of it being an interception. Just little, tiny things that you see it. In some cases you see great improvement. It's really not a matter of if we can do it, it's just when." — NC State football coach Dave Doeren on how close the program is in reaching its goals (TheACC.com) "I am so appreciative of the Singers for taking me into their home and treating me like one of their own children. They showed me a life that I never would have seen otherwise and helped me grow. And I'm so grateful for my mom, who wanted the best for me, even if it meant doing something that tore her heart out." — NC State fifth-year senior left tackle Rob Crisp on leaving his mother to live with the Singer family after he turned 14 years old (GoPack.com) "For me to make a decision, I usually have to wait, especially when it comes to college. I wait a lot to pick out candy at Food Lion. I just try to think a lot of things through. I don't know what I'm waiting for, but I'll definitely check out some more schools before I make a decision." — Garner (N.C.) High senior run- ning back Nyheim Hines, a key NCSU recruiting target, on his college decision (TheWolfpacker.com) "That bank shot is his typical shot. The threes, if he can make those, he'd be a dangerous player as he goes on through his career because he's got all the mid- range stuff, he's got great hands inside and he's got a knack." — Phoenix Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek on former NCSU star small forward and Suns rookie T.J. Warren (AZCentral.com) "In this crazy world of college athletics and college basketball it's not the easiest thing. If you get good players, they don't stay nor should they. Just being around this program since Coach [Mark] Gottfried has been here, you can see he is recruiting really talented kids. But even more impressive and importantly is the quality of kid that he has. I think we can have a lot of success in the years ahead." — NC State men's basketball legend and former NBA player Tom Gugliotta on the Wolfpack basketball program (The Raleigh News & Observer) "The only thing I knew about NC State was ESPN's 30 for 30 and Coach Gottfried. When I got here on my visit, I actually saw what was going on, and that was what really sold me on my decision to come here." ■ NC State redshirt junior combo guard Trevor Lacey on learning about the Wolfpack (GoPack.com) PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN