NC State baseball bounced from College World Series as Florida eliminates Wolfpack

Senior pitcher Logan Whitaker described the never-quit nature of his teammates and a teary-eyed Elliott Avent looked away in search of his thoughts.

There’s always a chance, the veteran righty said. And that’s all that can be asked.

N.C. State fought for three years for a chance they weren’t guaranteed. Finally, the Wolfpack gave themselves a chance and made this year’s Men’s College World Series, where heartache reared again.

First on a walk-off loss in the opening round and again in another one-run loss Tuesday that ended its season.

The Wolfpack stranded eight runners on base in a 5-4 loss to Florida, stranding 20 across the entire CWS and, in the end, N.C. State ran out of chances.

“It’s not that easy but, yeah, missed opportunities in this game will drive you crazy,” Avent said.

N.C. State also provided itself with so many opportunities because of Whitaker. The righty scattered two hits, three walks and a home run across seven innings of relief while striking out a season-high 10.

His injury-plagued underclassmen years kept him from competing in Omaha before. He watched ace pitcher Sam Highfill’s legendary performance in that 2021 tournament and dedicated his work to give Highfill another chance to pitch there.

Once upon a time it wasn’t clear if Whitaker would ever pitch again. His Tuesday performance was his longest of the season, least hits he allowed in an outing over an inning and least runs allowed since early March.

“If a person doesn’t quit on themselves then there’s going to be somebody out there that’s not going to quit on you,” Avent said. “That’s what Logan represents.”

Whitaker said his changeup worked while his fastball found its pace. He also credited a tremendous diving catch by Noah Soles in right field to prevent an extra-base hit in the top of the sixth.

Soles, who also battled through injury, came back on Tuesday after getting medical treatment on Saturday.

Left-handed sophomore starter Dominic Fritton started hot through the order but lost control. He walked three, hit two and struck out three until a sacrifice fly tied the game in the second.

Florida All-American Jac Caglianone then sent a 0-1 fastball into the stands in right-center field at 115 miles per hour for a three-run home run.

The projected top-five draft pick’s 34th home run of the year gave the Gators a 4-1 lead in the second. Fritton finished the inning and the Gators didn’t score again except for a solo home run from Tyler Shelnut in the fifth.

Caglianone also started on the mound for the Gators and N.C. State jumped on him. He handed out three free passes and gave up an RBI single to Brandon Butterworth that gave the Wolfpack a brief 1-0 lead in the first. Florida head coach Kevin O’Connor pulled Caglianone after he stranded two runners in the first but kept him in at designated hitter to provide power.

Alec Makarewicz matched Caglianone’s power with a two-run shot of his own over the left-field fence and into the N.C. State bullpen. That third-inning bomb closed the gap to one run. When Shelnut launched his homer in the fifth, Butterworth doubled in the fifth to bring in Garrett Pennington and equalize.

“It just means the world to me,” Makarewicz said. “It’s been a good ride.”

But N.C. State couldn’t find the big hit to equalize. Luke Nixon was thrown out at second on an attempted hit-and-run in the sixth. The Wolfpack stranded two runners in the seventh. Pinch runner Andrew Shaffner was left on third in the eighth.

The transfer from East Carolina stepped to the plate in the bottom of the ninth with another chance to be a hero. He connected on an 0-2 pitch that fell short of another chance and solemnly into the left fielder’s glove.

N.C. State’s season ended its season 38-23. And it ended in Omaha.

“It’s a hard place to get to. It’s a great place to get to,” Avent said. “It’s hard to leave.”

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