Is NC State back on the right side of the hosting bubble after taking UNC series?

At the very least, NC State put itself back into the discussion for hosting an NCAA tournament regional when it took two of three from North Carolina. The Tar Heels are also battling for one of the last hosting spots, and there’s a pretty good chance the Wolfpack just hopped past them in the pecking order.

Tournament field projections haven’t been updated this week, but prior to the weekend, both D1Baseball and Baseball America had the Heels as one of the last teams getting a hosting bid. They’ll probably be replaced by NC State in those projections this week.

Which would still leave some work to solidify the spot, though. An 0-2 showing in Durham this week could erase the ground State just gained in the eyes of the selection committee. It’s going to be a close thing no matter what, and getting through pool play to the semis on Saturday is probably the minimum necessary to feel comfortable about a hosting spot. If State gets all the way to the Sunday title game, that should be enough.