NC State ‘shocked and disappointed’ it didn’t make NCAA baseball tournament field
The N.C. State baseball team left Charlotte after a loss to UNC in the ACC tournament still feeling good about its season continuing, expecting to make the NCAA tournament.
The Wolfpack found out Monday it was not one of the 64 teams in the NCAA tournament field.
One year after making it to Omaha, to the College World Series, the Wolfpack (36-21) is on the outside looking in. This is the first time since 2014 the team has not made the NCAA tournament.
“Criminal” was the one-word tweet from N.C. State baseball’s official account, following the announcement.
“We are shocked and disappointed that our baseball team did not receive a bid to the NCAA tournament,” N.C. State athletic director Boo Corrigan said in an official statement. “We hurt for our student-athletes and coaches who worked so hard and who we believe deserved this opportunity.”
The baseball team’s apparent snub is the latest such perceived slight from the NCAA. Last year in Omaha, the team was sent home overnight by the NCAA due to COVID-19 protocols. In December, the football team’s Holiday Bowl game was ruled a no contest after UCLA backed out the day of the game.
In March, the women’s basketball team, one of the top four seeds, was sent to Bridgeport, Connecticut, where they had to face UConn in what was essentially a home game for the Huskies.
Thought they were in
The Wolfpack won Pool C at the ACC tournament and fell to UNC, 9-5, in the championship game. After that contest, Avent and senior Devonte Brown talked about moving on and preparing for another deep run.
“We’ll take this week to regroup, focus on the things we do well and maybe get that much better at some little things,” Avent said Sunday, assuming N.C. State would get in.
Brown added how the team was going to lean on last year’s experience moving forward.
“You have to forget everything and prepare yourself to keep going and keep playing baseball,” Brown said. “It’s not over until it’s over.”
Turns out, it is in fact, over.
Why didn’t N.C. State make it?
Ahead of Monday’s selection show, D1baseball.com projected N.C. State to head to the Knoxville regional. Earlier projections on Sunday had the Pack in Greenville, where ECU is hosting.
“State’s a really good club and I think they should be in the NCAA tournament,” UNC coach Scott Forbes said Monday. “I don’t understand why they’re not, to be honest with you. And I’m confidently saying that I think they’re better maybe than some of the teams that got in, but that’s not my job. I just hate it for them because they’re in our league, they’re good people and they have a heck of a team.”
After the field was announced on Monday, Army athletic director, Mike Buddie, the NCAA Division I Baseball Committee chair, said N.C. State’s non-conference strength of schedule looked “different” from some of the final teams that made it into the field.
N.C. State had an overall RPI rating of 33. Six spots below the Pack was Ole Miss (32-22), one of the teams Buddie said edged out the Pack.
“In their 10 ACC series they won four of those 10,” Buddie said Monday during the selection show, which aired on ESPN2. “Only one of those four series that they won was against a team that was in the field.”
N.C. State swept Georgia Tech the weekend of March 25-27. The Yellow Jackets finished 34-22 and head to Knoxville. During the final stretch of the regular-season, the Wolfpack dropped league series to Virginia Tech, Louisville, North Carolina and Wake Forest.
The Hokies, Cardinals and Tar Heels will all host regionals this weekend.
The Pack’s lone ACC series win in the final month of the regular-season was against Duke. The Blue Devils didn’t advance to the ACC tournament after winning it a year ago.
N.C. State’s best non-conference wins were a pair of victories over ECU. The Pirates haven’t lost a game since falling to State on April 26, and are currently on an 18-game winning streak.
ECU is the No. 8 overall seed in the NCAA tournament.
The Wolfpack also dropped a non-conference game to Campbell, and had the second game canceled. The Camels are also headed to the Knoxville regional.
N&O staff reporter C.L. Brown contributed to this report.
This story was originally published May 30, 2022 at 2:47 PM with the headline "NC State ‘shocked and disappointed’ it didn’t make NCAA baseball tournament field."
