Reliever Duo Lands on Preseason Watchlist For NC State

RALEIGH — NC State baseball is just a few days away from getting back into action at the Puerto Rico Challenge in the Caribbean. Head coach Elliott Avent has a strong squad filled with talented returners and some players expected to be very impactful out of the transfer portal. The bullpen figures to be a key factor in the Pack's success in the coming season, especially given a pair of important returners.

The sophomore duo of right-handed pitchers, Anderson Nance and Collins Black, landed on the D1Baseball Top 100 list for the nation's best relief pitchers. After cutting their teeth as freshmen youngsters, Nance and Black could be important in filling the void left by Jacob Dudan, who moved into the starting rotation.

More on Nance and Black ahead of their sophomore seasons

Coming in to shut things down. @AndersonNance8 and @CollinsBlack_11 each get a spot on @d1baseball's 2026 Preseason Top 100 Relief Pitchers list! pic.twitter.com/vu4smxtFIt
— NC State Baseball (@NCStateBaseball) February 9, 2026

Nance put together a standout freshman campaign in 2025 for the Wolfpack. The powerful righty pitched 54 innings, striking out 53 batters. He ended the year with a 3.50 ERA, one save and an 8-2 record. Those numbers helped Nance earn ACC-All Freshman honors, as well as second-team All-Freshman Honors from the NCBWA. As for what he improved during the offseason, Nance added to his arsenal as a long reliever.

"I would say working on my fifth pitch, the cutter," Nance said. "I've just been trying to get something that's in the middle of my slider and my fastball, just to get something different in my arsenal and just throw hitters off a little bit more."

The returner came in as the No. 17 reliever in the country according to D1Baseball, marking one of the highest members of the Wolfpack on any of these lists so far.

Looking at @NCStateBaseball's projected pitching staff and there's a lot to love-- especially looking at the weekend rotation.

In the bullpen, Collins Black and Ryder Garino have significant breakout potential, while Anderson Nance is among the ACC's best closers. pic.twitter.com/Rn71hxkdVx
— Just Means Less ACC (@JML_ACC) February 3, 2026

Black will join Nance in the bullpen as one of the other more critical arms for Avent and pitching coach Clint Chrysler to turn to during the season. Black didn't get nearly the same amount of work as Nance during his freshman season with the Duke Blue Devils, just down the road. Black threw just 9.1 innings and struck out 18 batters in those opportunities.

The sophomore showed tremendous recovery ability after he struggled in his collegiate debut, in which he gave up six runs to Cincinnati. If Chrysler and Avent can get the version of Black that showed up after his rough debut, he'll be a strong option in the later innings of games for the Wolfpack, working in tandem with Nance. He earned the No. 96 spot in the Top 100.

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