It's the end of an era for NC State baseball.
NC State baseball coach Elliott Avent will step down at the end of this season, marking the end of a 30-year tenure for a man synonymous with the program, NC State announced Thursday morning. NC State's Board of Trustees scheduled an emergency meeting for Friday morning. The board must approve new contracts and the meetings is expected to be related to the baseball vacancy.
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“Not many people get the chance to do what they love at a place that means so much to them,” Avent said in the statement. “I've been lucky enough to have that opportunity and I've loved every minute of it. I want to thank all the coaches and staff who committed so much to make this journey so rewarding and successful. To our many loyal fans, I would like to say what an honor and privilege it has been to stand in that first base dugout at Doak Field and listen to you cheer our players. They played their hearts out for you and NC State.
Avent, 70, is NC State's all-time winningest coach with 1,103 wins and he guided the Wolfpack to College World Series appearances in 2013, 2021 and 2024. The 2021 team was eliminated from the CWS due to COVID-19 protocols when it was a single win away from the best-of-three final.
He grew up in Nash County and attended NC State before coaching stops at several schools. He was the head coach at New Mexico State for eight seasons before beginning at NC State in 1997. Avent won more than 1,300 games in his career.
“Elliott has built a lasting legacy at NC State and in the sport of college baseball, enjoying competitive success while touching so many lives in the process,” NC State athletics director Boo Corrigan said in a statement. “He has been a wonderful representative of our department and university and will forever be a part of our story. I want to thank him for his many contributions and wish him all the best in his retirement.”
NC State is on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament. NC State (32-22 overall, 14-16 in the ACC) lost two of three to North Carolina to end the regular season and was pounded 21-12 by Duke in Tuesday's first round of the ACC Championship. Critical injuries to starting pitchers Ryan Marohn and Jacob Dudan changed the trajectory of the season and left State scrambling to reshuffle its pitching staff.
The NCAA will announce the 64-team baseball tournament field Monday, May 25.
As recently as last week, Avent was noncommittal about what was next.
"I don't know what the future holds," Avent told the media on May 16 after beating UNC in the regular season finale. "All I know is that this is as big a win as I've had since I've been here and I'm going to go home and enjoy this thing tonight with my wife and then go to Charlotte, get ready for the ACC Tournament, and hopefully regional."