NC State struggles in loss to Stetson to open NCAA Tournament stay

After a back-and-forth ACC Tournament quarterfinal loss to Clemson, which seemed to be an Omaha-type contest, NC State arrived in the NCAA Tournament with confidence it could carry that momentum forward after it entered the field of 64 with a 3-7 mark in its previous 10 games. 

But a nightmare first inning allowed Stetson to take control of the Auburn Regional opener to cruise past NC State 11-2 on Friday afternoon at Auburn’s Plainsman Park. 

The nine-run defeat marked the Wolfpack’s worst loss in a regional since Campbell ended NC State’s 2023 season with an 11-1 defeat in the Columbia Regional. It’s also the first time NC State has lost its opening game of the NCAA Tournament since it went 0-2 in the Greenville Regional in 2019 with losses to Campbell and East Carolina. 

Junior left fielder Josh Hogue led the Wolfpack with a 3-for-4 day at the plate, aided by a solo homer, while junior left-handed pitcher Dominic Fritton took the loss with six runs allowed (three earned) on just two hits with three walks and a strikeout in only ⅓.of an inning on the mound. 

Now, the Pack has a tall mountain to climb to avoid its first winless trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last six years. It will face the loser of No. 4 Auburn and Central Connecticut in the first elimination game of the regional Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET (2 p.m. CT).

Here are three takeaways from NC State’s regional-opening loss to Stetson.

First-inning woes

When NC State emerged from the more than two-hour rain delay, the Wolfpack couldn’t find a groove — both on the mound and in the defense behind Fritton. 

Fritton walked the first two batters he faced, which set the tone of the disastrous inning that was set to follow. It seemed like Fritton was going to avoid disaster with a ground ball up the middle, but the exchange from senior shortstop Justin DeCriscio to second baseman Luke Nixon was bobbled, allowing everyone to be safe. 

That error allowed Stetson to score its first run — of what became a seven-run frame — with the bases still loaded. The Hatters kept the pressure on as Fritton walked in a run to end his outing after just one out and 33 pitches. NC State’s quick hook off Fritton marked the shortest start of his Pack career since he went just ⅓ of an inning against The Citadel on April 28, 2023 as a freshman.

Stetson’s biggest damage of the inning, which only featured three hits to go with four total walks, came in ironic fashion. Former NC State infielder Isaiah Barkett, who transferred to the Hatters after the 2023 campaign, laced a two-RBI double with two outs to cap an explosive frame for the Atlantic Sun regular season champions.

In all, Stetson sent 11 batters to the plate in a frame that lasted 26 minutes in real time to put the Wolfpack in one of the deepest holes it had faced this season before it even had a chance to bat. NC State came back from six-run deficits twice in the regular season — at Cal and against Virginia — but seven proved to be too much of a hole to climb out of. 

NC State’s bats struggle

After the Wolfpack fell into a deep hole early in the game, its offense couldn’t shift out of neutral for much of the afternoon. NC State only mustered five hits through the first seven innings before Hogue and freshman designated hitter Brandon Novy both left the yard with a solo homers in the eighth.

How poorly was NC State hitting overall, though? It was just 2-for-12 with runners on base, including an 0-for-4 mark with those in scoring position against Stetson. Oh, and with two outs? Just an 0-for-7 mark.

That type of hitting wouldn’t be able to beat most teams, especially in the postseason on the road to Omaha. The Wolfpack had _ batters without a hit in the loss, including four that went 0-for-3 or worse against the Hatters’ pitching staff.

Former Pack transfer impresses

As noted earlier, Barkett was recruited out of Oviedo (Fla.) High School by NC State coach Elliott Avent and his staff. He appeared in just 10 games during the 2023 season, his lone campaign with the Wolfpack, before entering the transfer portal. 

And in his first opportunity to play against his former squad? Barkett, an NC State baseball legacy player after his father, Andy, played in Raleigh from 1992 to 1995, made sure to make the Pack pay. 

Barkett, who entered the tournament as the Hatters’ top hitter with a .380 average as the second-toughest to strikeout in Division I (eight strikeouts in 208 at-bats) to go with 30 stolen bases, put both of those aspects of his game on full display. He went 3-for-4 with three doubles, two walks and four RBI to pace Stetson’s offense. 

The 5-foot-11, 186-pound third baseman was able to get the last laugh against the Wolfpack with his dangerous bat at the plate. Now, the Wolfpack will have to win its way through the loser’s bracket if it wants an opportunity to play in a Super Regional next weekend.