2021 NCHSAA 3A Baseball Playoff Projections

As the abbreviated regular season winds down for baseball teams across North Carolina, HighSchoolOT is projecting the state playoff brackets for each of the four classifications.

Posted 3:59 p.m. May 31, 2021 — Updated 3:37 a.m. Jun 13, 2021

Nick Stevens

, HighSchoolOT managing editor

Below are the projections for the 3A baseball state playoffs for the 2020-2021 season.

These projections are not official and can change when the official brackets are released by the N.C. High School Athletic Association on Saturday, June 12. However, these projections are made using the protocols adopted by the NCHSAA Board of Directors and the results entered into MaxPreps by the schools. You can read the in-depth breakdown on how the playoff qualifiers will be determined and brackets created by clicking here.

Looking for projections from other classifications? Click here!

Here's how the NCHSAA playoffs will work during COVID-19

Important note: We will not be able to project an actual bracket for the playoffs this year, only the qualifiers, the wildcard spots, the seeding tiers, and the bubble. Since the bracket will be built based on a random draw, it is impossible for us to project the eventual bracket with any level of certainty.

These playoff projections will be updated regularly throughout the final weeks of the regular season. To receive alerts when new projections are released, download the free HighSchoolOT app on your phone or tablet.

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This projection was last updated on June 12 at 11:00 PM

3A East Baseball Projection

All records shown are conference records only. Neither overall winning percentage nor MaxPreps Rankings factor into the playoff format for the 2020-2021 school year.

First place automatic bids (Random seeds 1-10 in alphabetical order):

Big East 3A: Hunt (8-2)
Big Eight 3A: Northern Durham (6-1)
Coastal 3A: West Carteret (9-0)
Eastern Carolina 3A/4A: D.H. Conley (10-1)
Greater Neuse 3A: West Johnson (7-3)
Mid-Piedmont 3A: Asheboro (10-2) OR Southeast Guilford (10-2)
Mid-State 2A/3A: Northern Guilford (14-0)
Mideastern 3A/4A: South Brunswick (8-5)
Patriot 3A/4A: Terry Sanford (10-0)
Tri-County 3A: Union Pines (8-1)

Second place automatic bids (Random seeds 11-12 in alphabetical order):

Big Eight 3A: Orange (6-1)
Mid-Piedmont 3A: Asheboro (10-2) OR Southeast Guilford (10-2)

Wildcard bids (Random seeds 13-16 in order of qualifying):

J.H. Rose (9-3)
Cape Fear (7-3) OR Clayton (7-3) OR Fike (7-3) OR Jacksonville (7-3)
Cape Fear (7-3) OR Clayton (7-3) OR Fike (7-3) OR Jacksonville (7-3)
Cape Fear (7-3) OR Clayton (7-3) OR Fike (7-3) OR Jacksonville (7-3)

First 10 teams out (in order of first to miss the field):

Cape Fear (7-3) OR Clayton (7-3) OR Fike (7-3) OR Jacksonville (7-3)
Southern Alamance (8-4) OR Southwestern Randolph (8-4)
Southern Alamance (8-4) OR Southwestern Randolph (8-4)
Cleveland (6-4) OR Lee County (6-4) OR South Johnston (6-4) OR Southern Lee (6-4)
Cleveland (6-4) OR Lee County (6-4) OR South Johnston (6-4) OR Southern Lee (6-4)
Cleveland (6-4) OR Lee County (6-4) OR South Johnston (6-4) OR Southern Lee (6-4)
Cleveland (6-4) OR Lee County (6-4) OR South Johnston (6-4) OR Southern Lee (6-4)
C.B. Aycock (7-5)
Chapel Hill (4-3) OR East Chapel Hill (4-3) OR Northwood (4-3) OR Rockingham County (8-6)
Chapel Hill (4-3) OR East Chapel Hill (4-3) OR Northwood (4-3) OR Rockingham County (8-6)

3A West Baseball Projection

All records shown are conference records only. Neither overall winning percentage nor MaxPreps Rankings factor into the playoff format for the 2020-2021 school year..

First place automatic bids (Random seeds 1-7 in alphabetical order):

Big South 3A: Crest (12-0)
North Piedmont 3A: East Rowan (8-2) OR Jesse Carson (8-2)
Northwestern 3A/4A: St. Stephens (8-3)
Piedmont Triad 3A: Southwest Guilford (10-0)
Rocky River 2A/3A: No automatic bid
South Piedmont 3A: Cox Mill (9-3) OR Northwest Cabarrus (9-3)
Southern Carolina 3A: Cuthbertson (12-2)
Western Mountain 3A: T.C. Roberson (13-1)

Second place automatic bids (Random seeds 8-11 in alphabetical order):

Big South 3A: Kings Mountain (10-2)
South Piedmont 3A: Cox Mill (9-3) OR Northwest Cabarrus (9-3)
Southern Carolina 3A: Sun Valley (11-3)
Western Mountain 3A: Asheville (11-3)

Third place automatic bids (Random seed 12 in alphabetical order)

Western Mountain 3A: North Henderson (10-4)

Wildcard bids (Random seeds 13-16 in order of qualifying):

East Rowan (8-2) OR Jesse Carson (8-2)
Mount Tabor (8-3)
Marvin Ridge (11-4)
West Rowan (7-3)

First 10 teams out (in order of first to miss the field):

Central Cabarrus (8-4) OR Jay M. Robinson (8-4)
Central Cabarrus (8-4) OR Jay M. Robinson (8-4)
Western Guilford (7-4)
Forestview (7-5) OR North Gaston (7-5)
Forestview (7-5) OR North Gaston (7-5)
Piedmont (7-7) OR South Iredell (5-5) OR Tuscola (7-7) OR Watauga (6-6) OR West Henderson (7-7)
Piedmont (7-7) OR South Iredell (5-5) OR Tuscola (7-7) OR Watauga (6-6) OR West Henderson (7-7)
Piedmont (7-7) OR South Iredell (5-5) OR Tuscola (7-7) OR Watauga (6-6) OR West Henderson (7-7)
Piedmont (7-7) OR South Iredell (5-5) OR Tuscola (7-7) OR Watauga (6-6) OR West Henderson (7-7)
Piedmont (7-7) OR South Iredell (5-5) OR Tuscola (7-7) OR Watauga (6-6) OR West Henderson (7-7)

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