The replay: NC State wins an NCAA title, and a rookie claims a roster spot

It’s not uncommon for Triangle teams to win NCAA championships, but it’s usually Duke and North Carolina. N.C. State got into the act this week when its women’s cross-country team won the school’s first NCAA title since 1983. It was big news in a week that saw a Carolina Hurricanes rookie lock down a roster spot and UNC hit its first rough patch this basketball season.

Wolfpack wins NCAA title in X-C

N.C. State held off Florida State in Tallahassee to win the NCAA women’s cross-country championship on Saturday, the Wolfpack’s first NCAA title in women’s cross-country but third national title; N.C. State won AIAW titles in 1979 and 1980, before the NCAA took over administration of women’s sports.

Five Wolfpack runners earned all-American honors to win the ACC’s first NCAA title in the sport since 1982.

Jarvis makes his case, and the Hurricanes’ roster

Rookie forward Seth Jarvis wasn’t expected to make the Hurricanes’ roster out of training camp, and he wasn’t expected to stick around for more than nine games, which would activate the first year of his pro contract. The 19-year-old winger made it impossible to send him back to junior hockey with four goals in his first nine NHL games, playing seamlessly alongside some of the Hurricanes’ best players — and a team with plenty of firepower already suddenly has more.

Duke, NC State roll on while UNC stumbles

Duke kept its undefeated record intact heading into Friday night’s showdown in Las Vegas with No. 1 Gonzaga and N.C. State bounced back from its first loss with a win over Texas Southern, but North Carolina stumbled for the first time, dropping a pair of games to Purdue and Tennessee in Connecticut. There’s no shame in losing to a pair of Top 25 teams, but the way the Tar Heels lost left new coach Hubert Davis unhappy with their defensive effort: “I guarantee things will change,” Davis said.