Oregon State rides momentum, forces rematch with Mississippi State
Oregon State has advanced in the semifinal round in each of its last five College World Series appearances. This year the Beavers have to win two-in-a-row against a red-hot Mississippi State squad. However, Oregon State’s bats never cooled off from their comeback win over North Carolina, resulting in a commanding victory over the Bulldogs in the first game.
Mississippi State jumped ahead in the top half of the first, when Hunter Stovall hit an RBI-double to go up 1-0. Oregon State responded in the bottom half when Trevor Larnach hit an RBI-single into right field tying the game. Larnach is now third in school history with 75 RBI’s this season.
The Beavers broke open the game in the second inning. After early RBI-singles in the inning from Michael Gretler and Nick Madrigal, and a series of walks given by Mississippi State, Adley Rutschman hit a two-RBI single that gave Oregon State a 6-1 lead. With that, Rutschman now has 79 RBI’s on the season, which is a first in school history. Larnach and Rutschman are two of only three players in Oregon State history with at least 70 RBI’s in a season.
Mississippi State showed they were ready for Oregon State starter, Bryce Fehmel, after Stovall hit another RBI-single in the third inning for the Bulldogs. Fehmel, who is 10-1 with a 3.16 ERA, gave up five hits and two earned runs in just 3.2 innings pitched against Mississippi State. After Fehmel exited the game, Brandon Eisert carried the Beavers the rest of the way, pitching a flawless outing. Eisert would finish the last 5.1 innings only allowing one hit and no runs.
Meanwhile, the bats kept firing away for Oregon State. A Kyle Nobach RBI-single brought the Mississippi State lead up to 7-2 in the fourth inning, but the seventh inning shut the door for Mississippi State.
Zak Taylor would rock a two-RBI triple to left center field to start the inning off for the Beavers, followed by another Trevor Larnach RBI-single that knocked on Taylor. Later in the inning, Joe Casey came in to pinch-hit for Tyler Malone. Casey would rip a single to center field that would bring Larnach in for another run. Oregon State left the seventh inning leading 11-2.
Madrigal hit an RBI-double in the eighth for Oregon State, and the bleeding stopped there as Oregon took game one of this series 12-2.
Larnach went 3-4 with three RBI’s, and Taylor, Madrigal, and Rutschman each had two RBI’s for the Beavers. Stovall went 2-4 with two RBI’s.
Only 10 teams in College World Series have lost their first game and came back to win the National Championship. Oregon State looks to make it 11, as they take on Mississippi State on Saturday at 7 p.m. for a spot in the Championship Series.
Written by Matt Kirkle
Arkansas one step closer to history
The Arkansas Razorbacks defeated the Florida Gators 5-2 in Game 12 of the College World Series. A no-hit bid and 11-hit performance downs the defending champs.
Casey Martin had four of the 11 hits for Arkansas. His first knock came in the first inning. He singled through the left side after Eric Cole’s leadoff strikeout. He found his way to second after tagging from Heston Kjerstad’s fly out in right field. Ultimately, Luke Bonfield’s single to right field brought Martin home. Arkansas took an early 1-0 lead.
Isaiah Campbell then took over for Arkansas. The right-handed pitcher had a no-hit bid through 4 and 1/3 innings. Austin Langworthy singled to center field to break up the no-hit bid in the fifth inning, but Florida refused to stop there. After Blake Reese was hit by pitch, Brady Smith singled, driving in Langworthy for Florida’s first run. Campbell’s command began to deteriorate when he delivered a wild pitch, scoring Blake Reese. He was able to make it out of the inning but it was apparent that his appearance was nearing the end.
Arkansas manager, Dave Van Horn, removed Campbell in the sixth inning. Campbell finished with 5 and 1/3 innings pitched, striking out eight, and giving up two hits. Right-handed pitcher, Jake Reindl, then inherited a 5-2 lead and the rest was history. The score remain unchanged from this point on and Arkansas dethroned the defending champs.
Florida first round draft picks, Jonathan India and Brady Singer, potentially played their last game in a Gator uniform. Jonathan India was selected #5 to the Cincinnati Reds and Brady Singer was selected #18 to the Kansas City Royals in the 2018 MLB Draft.
The Arkansas Razorbacks will play the winner of Saturday’s Oregon State/Mississippi State game. This will be their first championship appearance since 1979.
Written by Harrison Popp
