FSU Baseball: Why N.C. State series is a must win to finish regular season
By Jason Parker
FSU baseball will conclude the regular season with a three game series starting Thursday – one that has become beyond crucial for the Noles.
After over three months of action, the regular season will come to an end for FSU baseball this weekend when the Seminoles host the N.C. State Wolfpack for three games inside of Dick Howser Stadium starting Thursday – games played a day early to allow teams a chance to get some rest heading into the ACC Tournament starting next Tuesday in Durham, North Carolina.
To say that the series between the Noles and the Pack is the most important series of the regular season is a major understatement. It may not have been that way when the season started in mid-February, but heading into post season play FSU baseball finds themselves in a place where they have to win at least two games this weekend.
It has nothing to do with the 40 win streak that has been going on for four decades now (I’m pretty sure the team will get three wins between now and their final loss of the season) – this has everything to do with trying to get an easier road in the ACC Tournament and any hope of hosting the Super Regional round should the Seminoles get to that point.
Entering this week, the Noles find themselves ranked in the top 15 of four out of the five college baseball polls (Collegiate Baseball has us No. 22, which is insane). Five of the teams ranked ahead of them in all the polls are teams the Seminoles have played (Florida, Clemson, UNC and Duke) or will play (N.C. State).
Florida State’s combined record? 3-8.
Even with a series win, the Seminoles will still enter the conference tournament with a losing record against ranked foes (even if you count the 2-1 record against Stetson this season, who is the only other ranked team the Noles played). But you can bet that 6-8 or at worst 5-9 looks slightly better – especially since the Seminoles may squeeze a ranked win or two out in Durham.
The Noles need a series win if they want ANY hope of hosting a Super Regional as one of the top eight seeds in the country. Right now, D1Baseball.com has the Seminoles hosting a regional, but being the No. 10 national seed and traveling to Georgia for the second round – ranking the Noles behind Clemson, UNC and Stetson and one spot higher than N.C. State.
FSU baseball currently sits sixth in the ACC standings, which would put them in the group with NC State and Pittsburgh for the pool part of the tournament. The Seminoles can move up if they win the series with the Wolfpack and the Panthers take two of three from Louisville – but can also move down and have to play Duke, UNC or top seeded Clemson if things play out the wrong way.
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Plenty of things are going to take place by the time the final regular season pitch is thrown on Saturday afternoon – but for the sake of FSU baseball, at least twice this weekend the Seminoles need to be in the win column or it could be a tough postseason for head coach Mike Martin and his team.