NC State barely able to field full team at College World Series due to COVID

The College World Series game between NC State and Vanderbilt was delayed on Friday due to several players being placed in quarantine, and the Wolfpack were barely able to field a full team because of it.

ESPN’s Ryan McGee reports that NC State starting second baseman JT Jarrett and top relief pitcher Evan Justice were ruled ineligible for the semifinal game due to issues related to COVID-19. Several other NC State players were also forced to miss the game. As a result, several freshman with minimal experience had to start.

New NC State players in the lineup on the season:

Carson Falsken: 2-for-12
Sam Highfill: 0-for-0
Eddie Eisert: 0-for-5
DeAngelo Giles: 1-for-10
Total: 3-for-27

(Also all Freshman) https://t.co/ZAhftwNok2

— D1Baseball (@d1baseball) June 25, 2021

A photo that was taken during the pregame ceremonies showed how depleted NC State’s roster was.

Here is today’s NC State squad. A few more in the bullpen, but still missing a lot. pic.twitter.com/ShO5wpJk8w

— Max Olson (@max_olson) June 25, 2021

NC State ended up having only nine position players and four pitchers available.

The issue was the first one related to COVID-19 during the College World Series. It obviously could not have come at a worse time for NC State.