The Wolfpacker

JANUARY 2016 ■ 73 season practice commences in late Janu- ary. There are plenty of strong arms, some coming off of injury — Wilder, William- son, redshirt sophomore lefty Cody Beck- man and redshirt junior right-hander Karl Keglovits — plus several younger hurlers looking for consistency. Numbers won't be a problem. "We like our ball club," Avent said. "I thought we had a very competitive fall, and more questions were answered for coaches this fall because of how hard our players went after it. I think that was great leadership that helped spur that to happen, and that gives you hope that we'll have great leadership in the spring. "So there's optimism, but there's al- ways some unknown when you go into any season." ■ ■ Key Games • At Clemson, May 6-8 — This series begins a three-week gauntlet the Wolfpack must run to end the regular season. The Tigers, under first-year head coach Monte Lee, will not be one of the favorites to win the ACC's Atlantic Division, but Death Valley is never an easy place to play, and Lee did not inherit a roster devoid of talent. • At Louisville, May 13-15 — Louisville and NC State figure be the two favorites in the Atlantic Division in 2016, and this series — the second key Atlantic Divi - sion series in a row for NC State — could have huge implications riding on it, especially seeding for the ACC Tournament. • Vs. North Carolina, May 19-21 — What a way to finish off the regular season, at Clemson and at Louisville followed by a home series against the archrival Tar Heels. UNC is several years removed from its run of six College World Series berths in a row and seven in eight years (2006-11, 2013), but the Tar Heels appear to be on the rise with a strong returning nucleus and a solid recruiting class. Supplier of high quality warm season turf for golf courses, athletic elds and residential lawns since 1985. Varieties include: • Bermudas • Centipede • St Augustine • Zoysias --- .. , "Let us help you create your lawn, fairway or eld of dreams!" A Charter Partner of the Lonnie Poole Golf Course and a major sod supplier during construction. Quality Turf, Inc. Alfred Wooten, Turfgrass Management Class of '77 in a eld of Empire Zoysia ready for harvest. Go Pack! GREGORY D. MILLER, CPA SANDRA A. MILLER, CPA REBECCA A. RHODES, CPA Serving the accounting needs of small businesses and individuals throughout Southeastern North Carolina since 1993. • Tax Planning and Prepara on • Accoun ng and Audi ng Services • Small Business Consul ng Wilmington, NC 265 Racine Drive 910-452-5260 Burgaw, NC 105 East Fremont Street 910-259-4644 www.millercocpas.com We're Pack Proud! Noting The Pack • With Virginia finally breaking the ACC's 50-year run without a national championship, the confer- ence heads into 2016 with two legitimate national championship contenders in Louisville and Miami, and NC State a likely third preseason top-10 team. According to D1Baseball's Aaron Fitt, the ACC should have six ranked teams when the preseason rankings come out, with Florida State, Virginia and North Carolina also likely to crack the top 25. After touring fall camps throughout the mid- Atlantic region this fall, Fitt counted NC State as the most impressive team he saw the entire fall. "I think Aaron probably caught us on a good day," Wolfpack head coach Elliott Avent said. "We started fall practice very early so we were pretty far along when Aaron was here. He probably saw other teams earlier in their practice schedule." • Assuming NC State does make the preseason top 10, it will mark the third time in the last four years the Wolfpack has been accorded that honor. Baseball America ranked the 2013 team No. 6 in the preseason, and No. 8 a year later.

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