The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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148 ■ THE WOLFPACKER Here are the top 10 rookies during the 2016-17 school year at NC State after Cra- vont Charleston, The Wolfpacker's Rookie of the Year: 1. Dennis Smith Jr., men's basketball: Smith earned second-team All-ACC honors, was selected to the league's first-team All-Freshman squad and became the first NC State rookie to be named the confer- ence's Freshman of the Year since Hawkeye Whitney shared the honor in 1977-78. The Dallas Mavericks drafted Smith No. 9 overall in the NBA Draft on June 22. Smith ranked sixth in the ACC in scoring (18.1 points per game), led the ACC in as- sists (6.2 an outing) and finished second in steals (1.9 a contest). He recorded a pair of triple-doubles in league play, becoming the only player in ACC history to achieve that feat. The Fayetteville, N.C., native scored at least 30 points in four games, including a signature 32-point effort in NC State's 84-82 win at Duke on Jan. 23. 2. Ky-lee Perry, women's swimming: Perry was part of the fourth-place 200-yard freestyle relay, fifth-place 400-yard free- style relay and seventh-place 200 medley relay at the NCAA Championships. She also qualified for Nationals in the 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke. Perry was named the ACC Freshman of the Year after winning the 50 freestyle (in a school-record time) and placing third in the 100 freestyle. The Norwalk, Conn., native was also part of three winning relays at the ACC Championships. 3. Anna Rogers, women's tennis: Rogers and doubles partner Martina Frantova went 27-2, the best season for a doubles team in NC State history, and finished No. 12 nationally in the doubles rank- ings. The duo reached the Sweet 16 at the NCAA Championships before falling to California's Maya Jansen and Maegan Manasse. The Stamford, Conn., native posted a 25-14 record in singles action, including 8-5 at No. 2 singles. She was named third-team All-ACC and voted the Wolfpack's MVP. 4. Coleman Stewart, men's swimming: Stewart was part of the 200-yard medley relay team that finished sixth at the NCAA Championships and also qualified in two individual events. He earned All-America honors for his role in the relay and in the 100 backstroke, where he finished 14th. The York, Pa., native was named the ACC Freshman of the Year after finishing third in the 100 backstroke and being part of the winning 200 medley relay at the confer- ence championships. 5. Tziarra King, women's soccer: The midfielder led NCSU with eight goals and 17 points, and earned third-team All-ACC honors and a spot on the league's All-Freshman squad. The Sicklerville, N.J., native ranked 11th in NC State history for most points in a freshman season with 17. King had four game-winning goals and recorded a penalty kick marker in the shoot- out win over Minnesota to propel the Wolfpack to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. NC State reached the Sweet 16 before falling 3-0 to Santa Clara. 6. Brad Debo, baseball: Debo led NC State in hitting (.335) en route to third-team All-ACC honors. He had four home runs, 43 runs batted in, 18 doubles and 30 runs scored for the Wolfpack. The catcher/designated hitter, who played at Orange High School in Hillsborough, was named to the Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-America squad and the ACC All- Freshman team. 7. Thomas Bullard, wrestling: Bullard was expected to redshirt (which his twin brother, Daniel, did), but made his debut in December and ended up going 21-12 and qualifying to the NCAA Tourna- ment at 157 pounds. The Lawrenceville, Ga., native went 8-4 in duals as the Pack's starter, including a 7-6 victory over Virginia's Andrew Atkinson, a redshirt junior who was ranked 14th nationally at the time. He went 3-2 in ACC duals, beat eventual ACC Champion Taleb Rahmani of Pittsburgh in the regular season and also was named to the All-ACC Academic squad. 8. Will Wilson, baseball: Wilson earned a spot on the ACC All-Freshman team after ranking third on the team with a .300 batting average. He was also third on the Pack with eight home runs, fourth with 41 runs scored, tied for first with 21 doubles and second with 48 runs batted in. The Kings Mountain, N.C., product had .973 fielding percentage while predominantly playing second base. Collegiate Baseball named Wilson a Freshman All-American. 9. Alexis Galarneau, men's tennis: Galarneau went 25-10 in singles action with six wins over opponents ranked in the top 110, earned second-team All-ACC honors and was ranked No. 80 in the country. He also posted a 15-13 mark in doubles action, handling the No. 1 spot with Nick Horton. The duo finished the season ranked No. 51 nationally. The Laval, Canada, native played all but two of his matches at No. 1 or No. 2 singles. 10. Jade Caraway, softball: Caraway earned second-team All-ACC honors after leading the Wolfpack with a .389 batting average, which broke the freshman school record and ranked fifth in the league. She totaled 72 hits, including a team-high five triples, and had one homer and 26 runs batted in. Caraway led NCSU with a .444 on-base percentage and was second on the team with 12 stolen bases. The Winter Gardens, Fla., native made only three errors in center field. — Jacky Zembal Ten Impressive Freshman Campaigns Dennis Smith Jr. became the first Wolfpack player to earn ACC Fresh- man of the Year accolades since Hawkeye Whitney shared the honor in 1977-78. PHOTO BY KEN MARTIN