OMAHA, Neb. (WNCN/TV 17 in Raleigh, N.C.) — At least one N.C. State Wolfpack baseball player has tested positive for COVID-19, just before the team is set to take on the Vanderbilt Commodores for a trip to the NCAA College Baseball championship series.
Sources tell CBS 17’s Todd Gibson that infielder J.T. Jarrett(Northern Guilford High School) was sent home due to COVID-19.
Another player, relief pitcher Evan Justice is being held out of the contest. Justice recorded a save vs. Vanderbilt when the two teams last met on June 21.
Justice has posted one win and four saves in the Pack’s 2021 postseason run. He was recently named a Third Team All-American by Perfect Game.
**********UPDATE: The game has been delayed due to health and safety protocols, according to the NCAA.**********
+++++++++from ESPN.com/www.espn.com:A key NC State player will not be available for the Wolfpack’s push toward its first ever College World Series title and another has been placed in quarantine while the school and the NCAA are scrambling to assess others on the team, delaying the start of Game 11 between NC State and Vanderbilt.
Starting second baseman JT Jarrett and bullpen ace Evan Justice are out for the semifinal matchup against the Commodores due to COVID-19-related issues. A source within NC State described Jarrett as “no longer with the team” while Justice was still in Omaha, but placed in quarantine. ESPN first learned of a positive test concerning Jarrett on Friday morning.
The absence of both players was confirmed by NC State as the team was arriving at Omaha’s TD Ameritrade Park for pregame warmups and took to the field around 1 p.m. ET ahead of the first pitch, originally scheduled for one hour later.++++++++++
The N.C. State baseball team issued this statement:
An undisclosed number of players from the team have been put into COVID-19 protocol and will be unavailable for today’s game.
NC State, the NCAA and appropriate parties and working together to monitor the situation.