AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Isaiah Barkett used three doubles to drive in four runs and Jonathan Gonzalez pitched six shutout innings as No. 3 seed Stetson scored seven times in the first inning in an 11-2 romp over second-seeded North Carolina State in the opener of the Auburn Regional on Saturday.
Stetson (41-20) awaits the winner of the nightcap between No. 1 seed Auburn and No. 4 seed Central Connecticut State in a Saturday matchup. NC State (33-20) will play an elimination game against the loser earlier Saturday.
NC State starter Dominic Fritton (5-5) retired just one batter and left trailing 6-0 after the teams waited out a 2 hour, 10-minute weather delay before starting.
The first five Hatters reached base off Fritton and Barkett capped the big first inning with a two-out, two-run double off reliever Anderson Nance for a 7-0 lead. Salvador Alvarez had an RBI single in the fifth. Barkett doubled and scored on a groundout in the eighth then added a two-run double in the ninth.
Josh Hogue and Brandon Novy hit solo homers for the Wolf Pack in the eighth off reliever Jake Gorelick, who pitched the final three innings for his third save.
Gonzalez (10-2) allowed five hits and walked three for Stetson. The Hatters have played in 20 NCAA Tournaments but have never advanced to the College World Series. They won their only regional title in 2018.
NC State has played in 35 tournaments and made four CWS appearances — most recently last year.