NCAA division 1 World Series update

Vanderbilt no longer has to sweep North Carolina State, the NCAA did it for it,  sweeping the Wolf Pack out of its college Division I Baseball World Series by virtue of virus protocol after six N.C. State players tested positive, one the starting second baseman, another a starting pitcher.

After defending champion, once-beaten Sandy got past the Wolf Pack, 3-1, Friday morning, to survive, it was learned before the first pitch that undefeated N.C. State was now down to nine players excluding hurlers.

And so late Friday night, early Saturday morning, the re-match scheduled for later in the day, was reported as “no contest”, the Wolf Pack were eliminated, and Vanderbilt automatically advanced to the championships best-of-three series.

After hoisting the championship trophy in 2003, 2012, and 2019, the Commodores now face the survivor of Saturday’s Texas-Mississippi State game after the once-beaten Longhorns stayed in the hunt by turning back the Bulldogs, 8-5, Friday in a contest delayed by heavy rain and reported lightning in the area for two hours and 47 minutes.

Now 2nd-ranked Texas of the Big 12 will have to win again or else 7th-ranked Mississippi State would be playing for its first national title in this, its 14th appearance on the biggest stage of college baseball at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb.

It was the coronavirus pandemic that ousted North Carolina State, an unseeded Atlantic Coast Conference team that had disposed of 9th-ranked Stanford in the first round, and then edged Vanderbilt, 1-0, to remain in the winner’s bracket. Now the Wolf Pack has packed up and gone home with a nightmare exit carting a 37-19 overall.

As for Vanderbilt, it was a helpful outcome because it now has more pitching depth and will probably start in game one, sophomore right-hander Jack Leiter, an All-America already in touch with being a first round pick in the college draft.

He’s also the son of southpaw Al Leiter, who pitched 18 years in the Major League, and has sat in the stands with family members for each Commodore game. Vandy of the Southeastern is now 47-16 and one of the pre-championship favorites.

Texas of the Big 12 has to down Mississippi State again. The Longhorns are sporting a 49-15 record and the Bulldogs are 45-17. At this stage, Mississippi State might have the better pitching, especially in starters, but Texas plays very confident and is on a roll.

So from a field of 64 teams, it’s now down to three, but no North Carolina State, no 3rd-ranked Tennessee, no 5th-ranked Arizona, no 9th-ranked Stanford, and no unseeded, unranked VIrginia.

No matter who’s still playing, it figures to be another capacity crowd turning out, but a lot also depends on the nasty weather still hanging around, so there might again be delays.