UNC and NC State are looking to punch their ticket to the 2024 College World Series
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- NC State is hoping to extend its baseball season with a second victory in the Super Regional round of the 2024 NCAA Baseball Championship.
North Carolina took on West Virginia winning 2-1 final. The team is headed to its first College World Series since 2018.
NC State will play in Athens against Georgia in a third-round deciding game on Monday after NC State was defeated in the second round on Sunday.
HOW TO WATCH: Television, streaming information for the upcoming games
Fresh off beating Georgia, NC State will take on another tough SEC foe in Kentucky in its opening round game at the 2024 College World Series.
The Wolfpack and Wildcats will face off on Saturday at Omaha's Charles Schwab Field at 2 p.m. ET.
Saturday's game will be televised on ESPN.
Eli Serrano III hit a home run in the sixth inning and made a leaping catch at the center-field wall in the seventh, helping NC State beat Georgia 8-5 on Monday night to secure the program's fourth trip to the College World Series.
N.C. State (38-21) advances to an opening-round game against Kentucky on Saturday. The Wolfpack have won 18 of their last 23 games.
Georgia (43-17), which forced a winner-take-all game with an 11-2 victory on Sunday, was looking to make its seventh trip to the CWS.
N.C. State took the lead for good, 3-2, in the top of the fourth when Matt Heavner scored from third on a wild pitch. Alec Makarewicz made it 4-2 with an RBI single down the third base line.
N.C. State extended it to 6-3 in the seventh on Alex Sosa's third hit of the game.
Georgia had two on with no outs in the seventh before Serrano's highlight catch to keep a three-run lead. N.C. State reliever Derrick Smith got Tre Phelps, who had a hit in his first three at-bats, to pop up to end the inning.
Makarewicz followed in the top of the eighth with N.C. State's 16th home run in six NCAA Tournament games for an 8-4 lead.
Georgia star Charlie Condon hit his nation-leading 37th home run in the top of the ninth for his 78th RBI. Smith retired Phelps again for his eighth save of the season.
Georgia starter Zach Harris (5-2) allowed three runs in three innings to take the loss.
Serrano went 3 for 4 and Makarewicz finished with three RBIs. Garrett Pennington hit a two-run shot in the second for N.C. State's sixth straight game with a home run.
Derrick Smith walks Georgia's Alford.
Then he throws three straight balls to Dylan Goldstein but gets a strike, a foul ball and an infield popup to get out No. 2.
Tre Phelps is Georgia's last chance. He swings at the first pitch and flies out to center.
The Wolfpack wins 8-5 and they've punched their ticket to Omaha for the College World Series!
Derrick Smith is on the mound in the ninth inning looking to close the show for NC State,
Corey Collins hits Smith hard but the ball goes straight to right fielder Noah Soles.
Charlie Condon then slugs a home run to right and the Bulldogs have a little life. It's 8-5 NC State.
Smith now facing Slate Alford and he walks him. Things are getting tight now.
