The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/535299
JULY 2015 ■ 135 the favorite to defend his national title from a year ago. Gwiazdowski rolled through the first four opponents, including the No. 16, No. 8 and No. 5 seeds, by outscoring them col- lectively 39-9. Then in the finals, Gwi- azdowski outpointed sixth-seeded Adam Coon from Michigan, 7-6, to repeat as the national champion. ■ Individual Female Performance Of The Year NC State's softball program had two ACC titles and four NCAA Tournament appearances in the 11 years since the pro- gram was established, but this year's squad went further than any team before them by reaching the Super Regionals. The Pack advanced to be one of the final 16 teams in the tournament thanks to rising senior first baseman Maggie Hawkins. Her 11th home run of the year came in the bottom of the seventh against Fordham and gave the Pack a 2-1, walk- off victory. NC State may not have been in that po- sition had it not been for Hawkins' bat. Her RBI single in the fourth tied the game 1-1. Hawkins, a transfer from Hofstra, was 3 for 3 at the plate and accounted for all but two of the Pack's hits. ■ Breakout Female Performer Of The Year An injury limited softball outfielder Ty- ler Ross to 37 games and 12 starts two seasons ago during her freshman year. This year, a healthy Ross established herself as one of the best hitters in the ACC. Ross' father is a former football player at North Carolina Central, and her mother was a two-sport athlete at Charlotte, play- ing both volleyball and basketball. So per- haps her breakout performance should not have been a surprise. After hitting .269 with four home runs, driving in 12 runs while scoring 10 times and stealing one base in 2014, Ross had across-the-board dramatic increases given the opportunity afforded an everyday player. She batted .309 with 14 homers, scored 43 runs and tied for the team lead with nine stolen bases. Ross also established a school record with 55 runs batted in. Her efforts earned her second-team All-ACC honors. ■ Breakout Male Performer Of The Year When rising junior point guard Anthony "Cat" Barber arrived at NCSU, he was a ballyhooed McDonald's All-American expected to become an immediate starter at point guard. He labored through an uneven freshman season, averaging 8.5 points and 3.5 assists per game and losing the starting job to Tyler Lewis. When Lewis transferred to Butler during the offseason, Barber again was entrusted