The tournament will feature teams from the ACC and SEC.
OMAHA, Neb. -- The 2024 College World Series is underway as UNC looks to fend off elimination in the tournament.
The ACC is going against the SEC.
Fourth-seeded North Carolina will look to keep its championship dreams alive against No. 8 seed Florida State in an elimination game Tuesday at the College World Series.
The game is scheduled for 2 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN.
The winner faces Tennessee on Wednesday afternoon.
It is the first meeting between the Tar Heels and Seminoles since 2022.
Two-way star Jac Caglianone broke the Florida single-season home run record to give his school the lead an inning after he struggled on the mound and got pulled, and the Gators eliminated NC State from the College World Series with a 5-4 victory Monday.
Florida (35-29) moved to another elimination game Tuesday against the loser of Monday night's Texas A&M-Kentucky matchup.
NC State (38-23) went 0-2 in the CWS for the first time in four all-time appearances.
Caglianone, a projected top-five pick in next month's amateur draft because of his bat, not his arm, labored through a 33-pitch first inning. The 6-foot-5, 250-pound lefty hit a batter and walked two to load the bases, gave up Brandon Butterworth's RBI single and then got a strikeout and fly out to mitigate what could have been a big inning for NC State.
His fastball averaged 89.5 mph in the inning - it had never been below 92 mph in his career, according to ESPN - and he was shown rubbing his elbow in the dugout after the first inning. Coach Kevin O'Sullivan opted to lift him for Cade Fisher (4-3) but said during an in-game interview that Caglianone's problem related to fatigue rather than an injury.
Caglianone stayed in the game as the designated hitter and atoned for what happened on the mound. NC State starter Dominic Fritton (3-7) struck him out on three pitches in the first inning, but in the second Caglianone drilled his low fastball over the right-center fence for a three-run homer and 4-1 lead.
The 404-foot low rider was his 34th homer of the season, breaking his school's single-season record of 33 set last year, and moved him into a tie with Matt LaPorta (2004-07) for career homers at Florida with 74.
Logan Whitaker replaced Fritton to start the third and allowed two hits and a run and struck out 10 over seven innings.
The Wolfpack's Alec Makarewicz and Gators' Tyler Shelnut also homered, and NC State cut the lead to 5-4 in the fifth on Butterworth's RBI double.
NC State had its leadoff man reach base in the sixth, seventh and eighth but couldn't push the tying run across. Luke Nixon got caught stealing second in the sixth, and the Wolfpack left two runners on base in the seventh and stranded a man on third in the eighth when Brandon Neely ended both innings with strikeouts.
The Wolfpack, which was third in the nation with seven walk-off wins, had the top of the order up in the bottom of the ninth. Neely caught Eli Serrano III looking at strike three, Garrett Pennington struck out when he couldn't check his swing on a pitch out of the zone, and Makarewicz lined out to left to end the game.
The Associated Press contributed.
NC State had the top of the lineup ready to go for the bottom of the 9th, while trailing Florida 5-4.
Eli Serrano began the bottom of the 9th by striking out looking on a fastball that caught the bottom of the zone and the inside of the plate.
Garrett Pennington then struck out swinging, leaving the Wolfpack down to its final out.
Alec Makarewicz, who had already homered in the game, came to the plate hoping to be the hero. He made solid contact after falling behind 0-2 but his fly ball came to rest in the glove of Florida's left fielder.
NC State's season is over.
Florida will play again tomorrow against the loser of Kentucky vs. Texas A&M tonight at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
NC State's loss guarantees that at least one SEC school will make the finals.
Virginia was the first team eliminated from the College World Series after losing to North Carolina and then Florida State.
The Florida Gators rode a 5-4 lead into the bottom of the 8th inning Monday in an elimination game against NC State.
The Wolfpack were able to get a leadoff runner on base. The next batter laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the tying run into scoring position.
With one out, Chase Nixon struck out but the ball got past the catcher. The Gators' catcher threw out Nixon at first, but the runner on second advanced to third.
Then with a high fastball, Brandon Neely struck out Noah Soles to end the threat.
NC State has three outs left to try and extend the 2024 season.
