CWS Sees Departure Of Hoos, Pack 9 Still In The Mix

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

Jim Quist @ACCTheQ

Following an ever so close loss to Mississippi State, Virginia dropped down into the Elimination Bracket of the College World Series (CWS). There they faced Texas and it was a do or die situation, one in which the Hoos have handled well over the course of the 2021 post-season. Meanwhile, NC State has been waiting patiently and resting up their bullpen. Who would they face in the Winners’ Bracket? The answer is a repeat with defending champions, Vanderbilt. The Wolfpack sent the Commodores to the Elimination Bracket with a 1-0 win. There, Vanderbilt faced off with Stanford and came away with a 6-5 win.

The Virginia-Texas game was delayed due to rain from 7:07pm E to 10:46pm E. The late start meant an early Friday morning finish and some fans struggling through a workday.

Mike Vasil took the mound for Virginia while Pete Hansen led the way for Texas. Both teams got off to a slow start as they felt out the pitching styles. Texas struck first in the second inning reeling off two hits and scoring the first run of the game. Virginia came away with a hit in the second and then again in the fourth while the Texas bats were quiet in the third and fourth.

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In the fifth, things opened up a bit for both teams. Eric Kennedy of Texas scored on a wild pitch as the Longhorns came away with 2 hits and a run off 2 Virginia errors. The Cavaliers’ Chris Newell evened things up with a home run that brought Logan Michaels in to make it 2-2.

CWS

Texas got no traction in the sixth and swapped out Cole Quintanilla for Pete Hansen to face the Virginia batters. The Cavaliers came away with a hit and no runs against Quintanilla.

The Longhorns’ bats remained quiet in the seventh and Virginia only managed a hit with no runs. Things were about to change over the next two innings.

Virginia brought in Matt Wyatt for Vasil in the eighth and Texas found an opening as they delivered two hits and a run to take the lead, 3-2. The Longhorns changed up their look from the mound bringing in Aaron Nixon for Quintanilla. The Cavaliers managed one hit to finish the inning.

The ninth inning was all Texas. Virginia brought in Zach Messinger for Wyatt and then Kyle Whitten for Messinger as the game slipped away. The Longhorns unleashed the bats and finished up with 3 runs and 2 hits to make it 6-2. Virginia’s bats had no answer and managed just one hit in the ninth to close out the season for the Cavaliers.

Pack 9

If there ever was a game for fans of NC State and, for that matter ACC baseball to watch at this point in the CWS, it’s at 2:00pm E. The Wolfpack will face off against Vanderbilt who will start Kumar Rocker on the mound. But, let’s put this into perspective for a moment. Rocker is an excellent pitcher, a high pick in the MLB Draft for sure. But is he infallible? No. He’s had his struggles and for this game he’ll have to go deep into the innings. Why? Vanderbilt has had to put in the extra effort since being sent to the Elimination Bracket by NC State. That has taxed their bullpen mightily.

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Let’s not forget that the Pack 9 have gone up against the SEC’s Pitcher of the Year (Kevin Kopps), the PAC 12 Pitcher of the Year (Brendan Beck) and left the college national strikeout leader with a loss (Jack Leiter). With wins over No. 1 seed Arkansas, Stanford and Vanderbilt it’s clear NC State deserves to be where they are in the CWS. Between batters who take advantage when it counts and a defensive effort that goes all out the Wolfpack are in a good position.

NC State will start Matt Willadsen against Vanderbilt Friday afternoon. It’s on Vanderbilt’s shoulders to not only win today but they’ll also have to lock up another win on Saturday as well. No easy task for the best of teams. Harder for one that won’t be as fresh as the Wolfpack.

Gametime: 2:00pm E with coverage on ESPN2.