Down 7-3 to Vanderbilt in the eighth inning, it appeared that NC State’s baseball season would soon end. But, in front of a raucous sell-out crowd in Raleigh, the Wolfpack scored three runs in the eighth and three runs in the ninth to win the regional by a 9-7 score Monday night. The victory lifts the Pack into a Super Regional in Florida.

Tarran Senay drove in five runs in the miraculous Wolfpack comeback victory over Vanderbilt to advance to the Gainesville Super Regional, Monday night.

A sold out crowd of 3,018 witnessed the Pack (43-18) rally from a 7-3 eighth-inning deficit to eliminate Vanderbilt (35-28). The two teams played to a 1-1 tie through one inning before State grabbed a 3-1 lead in the top third. Vandy came back with five runs in the bottom half to take control, and added another in the fifth to stretch the lead to four. Then the Wolfpack scored three runs in the eighth, and another three in the ninth to secure the win.

NC State advances to its third NCAA Super Regional since 2003. The Wolfpack advanced from the 2003 Wilson (N.C.) Regional, and the 2008 Raleigh Regional with three-straight wins on both occasions.

Senay didn’t enter the game until the seventh, but made an incredible impression over the next three innings. The junior finished the game 2-for-2 with a three-run homer and five RBIs, chopping the Commodore lead to one in the eight, and supplying the game-winning hit in the ninth.

Reliever Ryan Wilkins (5-2) scored his second win of the weekend, this time on the longest outing of his career, shutting out Vanderbilt for 4 2/3 innings and striking out six.

Trea Turner went 3-for-6 with one RBI, one run, and a stolen base to improve to 56-for-60 on the season. Danny Canela drove in one and scored once in a 2-for-6 performance. Senior captain Andrew Ciencin continued his torrid regional performance with a 2-for-5 evening and an RBI. Logan Ratledge hit a double and scored twice in a 1-for-4 outing.

NC State grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Turner led off the game with an infield single on a liner rocketed off of the pitcher’s hip. A bunt moved him to second, and a groundball pushed him to third with two away. Canela lifted a flare over the third baseman’s head that dropped fair to plate the game’s opening run.

Vanderbilt answered to tie the game 1-1 on Mike Yastrzemski’s one-out, solo shot to right center in the bottom first.

State managed a pair of runs in the third to jump ahead 3-1 thanks to some costly Commodore errors. Chris Diaz walked as the lead-off, but a swinging strikeout put one away. Canela singled to the left center gap, holding after Jack Lupo made a sliding play to save a double and a run. With runners on the corners, Ciencin hit a dribbler to the left side that the third baseman booted, scoring one. Fincher bunted and reached on a fielding error by the pitcher. Brett Austin grounded to short with the bases loaded, but beat the throw to break up a potentially inning-ending double play and drive in the third run.

The Commodores exploded for five runs in the third to leap in front 6-3. Tony Kemp doubled to left center as the lead-off, and Yastrzemski hit an RBI single up the middle before stealing second and moving to third on a groundout. Conrad Gregor drove him in with a single to center, then took second on a wild pitch. Spencer Navin walked to put two on with one out. Riley Reynolds singled to center to load the bases. Gregor scored and both runners moved into scoring position on a wild pitch. A grounder to short produced the second out as Diaz fired home in time to get the lead runner, but Connor Castellano drove in the next two with a double to the wall in center.

Vanderbilt added to the lead with a run in the fifth to make it 7-3. Navin took a pitch in the shoulder to start the inning, advanced to second on a wild pitch, and went to third on a sac bunt. Connor Harrell walked to put runners on the corners with one out. Castellano hooked a double into the right field corner to score Navin, but Harrell was gunned down on a relay from Austin to Bergquist to Canela, putting a stop to the rally.

The Pack electrified the crowd in the top eighth by cutting the lead to 7-6. Austin drew a lead off walk and Ratledge sent a laser down the left field line for a double to put two in scoring position. Senay came to the plate next, and put a charge into a 3-2 pitch, blasting it miles into the trees behind the right field fence for a three-run homer. Reliever Will Clinard entered after a two-out single by Ryan Mathews and ended the inning on the first batter he faced.

In the ninth, State triumphed with three runs to put the game away. Ciencin led off the inning with a single up the middle, and Bryan Adametz took his place as the pinch runner. Fincher laid down a sac bunt to push him to second, and reached when the throw to first hit him in the hand. A groundout to first advanced both runners into scoring position, and Ratledge was walked to load the bases. Senay took center stage once again, delivering the game-winning hit to score a pair with one out. Turner singled behind him to add the insurance run and set the final at 9-7.

NC State advances to the Gainesville Super Regional beginning Saturday, June 9 at 2 p.m. The Wolfpack will need to win a best-of-three series against host Florida to advance to its first College World Series since 1968. Games one and two will be aired on ESPNU, and if necessary game three will be carried by ESPN2. Radio coverage for the super regional will be provided by 88.1 WKNC, fans can follow Twitter updates from @NCStateBaseball, and live stats will be available at GoPack.com.

– News release

Matt Bergquist’s eighth-inning heroics propelled NC State to a 6-5 win over Vanderbilt Sunday night at Doak Field at Dail Park to stave off elimination and force a Monday night championship game at 7 p.m.

Ryan Mathews handed the Pack (42-18) a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first with a solo shot, and State added two more on a Trea Turner home run in the third to build a 3-0 lead. Vanderbilt (35-27) broke the seal in the fourth with a run, but the Wolfpack responded with runs in the fourth and fifth to leap ahead 5-1. The Commodores chopped that lead in half with two runs in the sixth, then tied the game with two more in the seventh, but Bergquist came up with the pivotal hit in the eighth to set the final at 6-5.

Bergquist went 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI, and a run, putting a stamp on a huge day for the junior. In two games Sunday, Bergquist pieced together a 5-for-8 afternoon with a home run and seven RBIs. Danny Canela and Brett Austin had the Pack’s two other multi-hit games, each going 2-for-4 with Austin driving in one and scoring the game-winning run.

Mathews hit his 17th homer of the year to put the Wolfpack on top in the first, his ninth in the last 14 games and third of the Raleigh regional. Turner’s two-run shot represented his fifth of the season.

NC State starter Anthony Tzamtzis went 6 2/3 innings, the second-longest outing of his career, striking out five batters while allowing four earned for a no decision. Reliever Ryan Wilkins (4-2) scored the win with two shutout innings to seal the deal, holding the Commodores to one hit and striking out two in the ninth.

Vanderbilt starter Kevin Ziomek lasted 3 1/3 innings and left with the loss, but came away with a no decision. Ziomek surrendered four earned on five hits and two walks while striking out four. Reliever Drew VerHagen pitched the next four innings, giving up two earned on five hits. Will Clinard shut out the Pack over the final 2/3.

The Wolfpack improved its run total to 47 for the regional, good for a school record in NCAA postseason play. State scored in 10 of its first 13 innings at bat in the two games Sunday.

For the second time Saturday, NC State scored in the bottom of the first. Mathews granted the Pack a 1-0 lead with a solo shot to left, his 17th of the year and third of the Raleigh regional. Vanderbilt threatened to answer with a run in the second, but Tzamtzis gunned a 3-2 pitch past Connor Castellano to end the inning with runners on second and third.

The Pack added two more in the third on Turner’s two-run blast. Bergquist led off the inning with a walk, then Turner sent a 1-1 pitch sailing over the left field wall with a towering shot that seemed to hang for a lifetime. State put two on with one out, but Ziomek killed the rally by striking out a pair to end the threat.

Vanderbilt broke through in the fourth to cut the lead to 3-1. Conrad Gregor doubled to the wall in right center with one away, then advanced to third on a passed ball. Spencer Navin’s sac fly brought in the Commodores first run of the game.

The Wolfpack came back with one run in the fourth and fifth. Logan Ratledge came aboard with a one-out double in the fourth. Bergquist followed him with a double that fell in front of the charging right fielder, and an errant relay throw allowed Ratledge to score. In the fifth, Austin hit an RBI single with two outs, bringing Andrew Ciencin home from second.

The Commodores cut the lead in half with two runs in the sixth. Tony Kemp drew a walk as the lead-off, and scored one batter later when Mike Yastrzemski tripled on a screamer down the right field line that just missed Ciencin’s glove on the way out of the infield. Yastrzemski scored on a groundout by the next batter. Vandy kept the pressure up, putting two in scoring position with one away, but Tzamtzis induced a foul pop and a fly out to preserve the 5-3 lead.

Vanderbilt tied the game 5-5 with another two in the seventh. Castellano led off with a single to left, moved to second on a groundout, and took third on a wild pitch. Kemp walked, then stole second to put two in scoring position with one out. Yastrzemski grounded out to score the first run, and Anthony Gomez doubled down the left field line to tie it. Reliever Travis Orwig entered after the double and induced a grounder from the only batter he faced, ending the inning.

In the eighth, the Commodores looked to take the lead, but a key defensive play kept the score deadlocked. Navin singled through the left side as the lead-off, and Riley Reynolds pushed him into scoring position with a bouncer to second. With one out, Turner fielded a grounder at third and fired across the diamond to get the second out. On the throw, Navin made his move for third, but Ciencin picked Turner’s throw and winged the relay back to third in time for a 5-3-5 double play.

The Pack carried that momentum into the bottom half to secure the win. Austin reached on a single up the middle, and a hit batsman to put Ratledge on behind him. Bergquist came up with the clutch RBI single to left, Austin beat the throw home, and Ratledge wheeled into third. Ratledge tried to score on a chopper to the right side during the next play, but was tagged out at the plate.

That insurance run turned out to be moot, as Wilkins rolled through the ninth in order, striking out the first and last batters of the inning.

NC State returns to the diamond Monday night at 7 p.m. for the Raleigh regional championship game. The winner of tomorrow’s contest will advance to the super regionals in Gainesville, Fla. against the homestanding Gators. Streaming coverage of Monday’s game will be linked to GoPack.com. Radio will be provided by 88.1 WKNC, fans can follow Twitter updates from @NCStateBaseball, and live stats will be available at GoPack.com.

When a group starts a Hall of Fame of any kind, they certainly want to have some big names to start it off and create excitement. When NC State announces its first class, don’t be surprised to hear names that everybody knows but I’d suggest going back, way back in time.

The reasons are many – from simply being chronological to picking individuals who have relatives who still remember them, from tipping the cap to important historic features to educating the public about little-known but important figures while the attention is high.

There will be plenty of time for the Norm Sloans and Jim Valvanos to be added to the Hall of Fame – I’m looking for the Jack McDowells and John Ripples of NC State’s history to make the first Hall. Who, you might ask?

McDowell, who played for NC State in the 1920s, died in 1969 so many will not remember him, but they know him. McDowell, a member of North Carolina’s Sports Hall of Fame, was the college’s first first-team All-America football player. He was a running back in football and led State to a 9-1 record and the Southern Conference Championship in 1927. He also was captain of the basketball team, ran track, played baseball and won 16 letters.

Ripple, who played football for NC State almost 100 years ago when it was the North Carolina College of Agriculture and Engineering, died in 1965 but an offensive lineman scholarship is named for him. He made second team All America in 1918. So, he was the school’s first All-America player. At 6-2, 200 pounds, he was one of the biggest players around at that time. He also had a good basketball career and, though he didn’t get the same accolades, he felt he was a better basketball player than football player.

If I had to guess the popular picks for the first Hall of Fame class, it would be: Willis Casey, Everett Case, Earle Edwards, Ronnie Shavlik, Kay Yow, Norm Sloan, Jim Valvano, David Thompson, Phillip Rivers and Ted Brown.

All those should eventually be in the Hall of Fame but for the first class, if I had 10 to pick, only the first five from above would be in my first 10. I’d have Willis Casey, Everett Case, Earle Edwards, Ronnie Shavlik, Jack McDowell, John Ripple, Connie Mack Berry, Ray Reeve, Roman Gabriel and Kay Yow.

By having women’s basketball coaching legend Kay Yow in my picks for the first class it may seem like I’m being inconsistent. But, for the most part, women’s athletics did not start until much later than men’s. In fact, it was 1975 when Yow became State’s first full-time women’s basketball coach. Her coaching record was an astounding 737-344. She is in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, one of only five women inducted, and is a gold-medal winning Olympic coach. If you want women included in the first class of athletes, Yow is the one.

If I were to pick anyone else from the last 40-50 years for the first induction, it would be David Thompson, quite possibly the best college basketball player under 7 feet tall ever, and Jim Ritcher, the nation’s best lineman in 1979 and two time All-American football player. I would also not induct Sloan and Valvano in the same year so as not to minimize Sloan’s achievements. Similarly, I wouldn’t induct Roman Gabriel and Phillip Rivers the same year.

Gabriel, twice an All-American and twice the ACC Player of the Year in the early 1960s, was a strong-armed quarterback who set 22 school and nine conference football records.

Connie Mack Berry, who played for the two-time NFL champion Chicago Bears, played year-round for NC State. At 6-3, he was a good basketball player, leading the Southern Conference in scoring in 1936 and 1937. He was the star end in football, the star center in basketball, a top pitcher in baseball and a track star.

Reeve, the long-time radio voice of the Wolfpack, is what most would consider the surprise pick. A pioneer broadcaster who started calling games in 1939, Reeve is most associated with NC State. He was the first broadcaster ever inducted in the N.C. Sports Hall of Fame. As the person who brought Wolfpack sports to the people before television was even around, Reeve deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.

If my top 10 were picked, you’d hear a lot of “Who?” questions – and that’s what the public needs, to find out about who these important athletic figures were. The others can wait.

Some other names that need to be considered are: four-time All-America swimmer Bob Mattson, seven-time individual swimming winner Dick Fadgen, first basketball All-American Morris Johnson, State’s first real basketball big man Tommy Burleson, Olympic gold medal swimmer Steve Rerych, seven-time NCAA cross country champion Julie Shea, ACC basketball player of the year Lou Pucillo and first-team All-America basketball star Sammy Ranzino.