Brett Netzer rounding the bases after hitting a walk-off home run. Photo by Chris Crews.
Bottom of the 9th, 2 outs, 2-2 pitch and Brett Netzer at the plate for the 49ers. That was the scenario created for the sophomore standout, belting a ball over the right field wall to beat Wake Forest 7-6 Wednesday night.
Netzer, now batting .369 on the season, pieced together three hits against the Demon Deacons, with the home run in the ninth being his first long ball of his collegiate career.
Two other 49ers capped off a three-hit night, those being Logan Sherer and T.J. Nichting.
Charlotte struck first with a run in the first inning, something that they have struggled to do for most of the season. Freshman Reece Hampton led-off the game with a single, extending his hit-streak to 17 games.
Sherer doubled down the right field line, as Hampton got thrown out at the plate after a smooth relay from Gavin Sheets at first base for the Deacons. Netzer followed Sherer’s double with a double of his own, scoring the first run of the ballgame for the 49ers.
After Wake added two runs in the second and one in the third, Charlotte answered in the third, piling up three runs to tie the game up at four. Hunter Jones led-off the inning with a walk, getting brought around to score off a single down the right field line from Derek Gallello.
Sherer followed Gallello’s single with a single of his own, scoring Gallello. Then, Netzer singled, moving Sherer 90 feet closer to scoring another Charlotte run. Drew Ober, who was selected as the Conference USA hitter of the week, grounded out to Wake’s shortstop, scoring Sherer from third in the process.
The 49ers pieced together two more runs in the sixth when Zach Jarrett scored Ober, who led-off the inning with a walk. Nichting, reaching base on one of his two doubles, came in to score after Derek Fritz grounded out to second base.
The stage was set going into the bottom of the ninth, 6-6, after Austin Wynn, Jacob Craver, and Brandon Vogler pitched out of jams to keep the Wake bats quiet.
Gallello and Sherer both went down quickly for the first two outs in the bottom of the ninth, bringing up Netzer. Netzer came into the at-bat with zero home runs to his name, but that shortly changed.
Donnie Sellers, a hard throwing right handed reliever, stepped to the rubber for Wake Forest, looking to sit down Netzer with a 2-2 pitch. Netzer sat back and jumped all over the fastball, sending it over the fence in right field, creating a chilling effect at Robert and Mariam Hayes Stadium.
As the Demon Deacons walked slowly off the field, the Charlotte bench emptied as if a bomb just went off inside the dugout, getting to the plate before Netzer even got to first. The 49ers mobbed Netzer at the plate, taking down their opponent from the Atlantic Coast Conference, 7-6.
Brett Netzer getting a quick cooler shower from his teammates after the game. Photo by Chris Crews.