Before he was able to wear Kentucky blue, pitcher Nic McCay had an illustrious career. Beginning his time at South Dakota State all the way back in 2019, he earned a spot in the starting rotation, finishing 6-1 in his first collegiate season.
However, due to injury, he would miss the entire 2020 and 2021 campaigns. He returned in 2022, earning second-team All-Summit League honors and leading the team in starts, innings pitched and strikeouts.
Unfortunately, yet again, McCay would miss the following season due to injury. His final year with the Jackrabbits eventually turned some heads, where he went 4-2 on the season and forced batters to only hit .226 against him.
Finally, after a roller coaster of emotions and figuring out what was next for himself, McCay was on the mound for the Kentucky Wildcats on Feb. 14, pitching not only his first game for the team, but also earning the day-one start.
He finished the game with the win, striking out four batters in five innings, only giving up two hits and walking two batters. Thanks to his performance, the Wildcats would go on to win their first game of the season 11-0 against Lipscomb.
Exactly a week later, the senior was on the mound again, now going up against the Belmont Bruins. After getting his feet wet, this outing proved that he can be Kentucky’s number one guy on any given night.
He pitched six innings, striking out seven batters and only giving up two hits out of the total 21 batters he faced. McCay received his second win of the season, and the Wildcats scraped by with a 2-1 win.
Recently, we saw McCay pitch his first game in Lexington, Kentucky on Feb. 28, getting his third start of the season against Hofstra. Before this matchup, he hadn’t given up a single earned run and batters facing him were hitting just .105.
Although Hofstra would score a run in the second inning, McCay would strike out three batters in that inning, leaving runners stranded. Once again in the fourth inning, the RHP and the Kentucky defense would only allow one run and escape another scary inning.
Eventually, after several mound visits, McCay would turn it over to redshirt senior Evan Byers, who ultimately got the win on the day.
McCay pitched 4.1 innings, striking out six batters, walking four batters and giving up two runs (one earned).
The Wildcats went on to 7-5, improving to 7-1 on the season.
After the game, Head Coach Nick Mingione admitted McCay could’ve pitched better, but was still proud of his performance.
“He wasn’t as sharp, but I give him a lot of credit,” said Mingione. “We still got four and a third innings out of him, where he only gave up one earned run, you know what I mean? That’s a good thing.”
Now, with three starts officially in the books, McCay’s new chapter of his life at the University of Kentucky is in full spring, and he’s just getting started.
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