RALEIGH, N.C.—In the first of two midweek games during its North Carolina trip, Villanova (7-8) scored the first two runs of the game in the top of the second inning but was ultimately defeated 4-2 by North Carolina State (15-2) at Dail Softball Stadium on Tuesday evening. The host Wolfpack took the lead on two home runs in the bottom of the second inning and hit a solo home run in the home half of the fifth before holding on the rest of the way for the narrow victory.
 
There was plenty of traffic on the bases for the Wildcats, who had runners aboard in five of the seven innings and put the tying runs aboard in the top of the seventh. Senior shortstop Megan Kern (Royersford, Pa.) walked in each of her first two plate appearances and junior left fielder Dani Dabroski (Cedar Grove, N.J.) was also on base twice with a single and a walk. Villanova drew five free passes and benefited from four North Carolina State fielding errors.
 
In the top of the second inning there were two outs and nobody on when junior center fielder Sydney Hayes (Douglassville, Pa.) laid down a well-placed punt in between the pitchers' circle and third base. It appeared she was going to beat out the throw to first anyway, but the throw went astray down the right field line as Hayes raced all the way around to third base. Dabroski walked and took second on a wild pitch to put runners at second and third with graduate second baseman Angela Giampolo (East Windsor, N.J.) at the plate.
 
Giampolo battled Wolfpack starting pitcher Aisha Weixlmann through an eight-pitch plate appearance before lofting a softly hit ball towards shortstop. The ball fell in front of shortstop Randi Farricker for what was initially ruled an infield single before being changed to a fielding error. Hayes and Dabroski both scored on the play to give the Wildcats a 2-0 lead. With the scoring change, the only hit of the game for Villanova wound up being a Dabroski bunt single with one out in the seventh inning.
 
Dabroski dropped a 1-1 pitch beautifully in front of the plate and there was no throw to first as she scampered down the line for a single. Giampolo reached on a fielding error one batter later to put the tying runs on base, but Maddie McPherson (4-1, 1.35 ERA) induced a groundball fielder's choice for the second out of the inning and then got a strikeout for the final out of the game.
 
In the bottom of the second inning Carson Shaner got North Carolina State on the board with a one-out solo home run against freshman starting pitcher Kelsey White (Taunton, Mass.). Michele Tarpey doubled to the gap in left-center field but White (2-2, 2.69 ERA) got Brittany Jackson to line out for the second out. Pinch hitter Libby Whittaker homered to straight away center field though, and the Wolfpack maintained a slim lead the rest of the way.
 
Graduate right fielder Paige Rauch (Windsor, N.Y.) and Kern drew consecutive one-out walks in the top of the first inning for an early scoring threat before both runners were stranded on base. In the third inning there were runners at first and second with one away for junior catcher Ally Jones (Brielle, N.J.), whose hard-hit line drive back to the circle was snagged by McPherson to start a 1-3 double play that ended the inning.
 
White induced a double play of her own to escape a potential jam in the first inning when she got Logan Morris to hit into a 1-6-3 twin-killing. The freshman righty for Villanova went 1 2/3 innings and Rauch eventually replaced her and struck out six while allowing a run on three hits over 3 1/3 innings of relief. Senior Sara Kennedy (Newtown, Conn.) pitched a scoreless sixth inning and escaped trouble after there were runners at second and third with nobody out in that frame.
 
Another midweek matchup awaits the Wildcats on Wednesday evening when they visit North Carolina for a 5 p.m. contest.