Watch: Oregon State wins College World Series after final-out flub opens door to incredible comeback
The Arkansas Razorbacks were one out away from winning the College World Series on Wednesday night, but a costly mistake paved the way for a brilliant comeback by Oregon State University to not only win the game, but win the series.
Oregon State clinched its third CWS championship with a 5-0 win Thursday night to take the best of three series 2-1.
Oregon State was down to their last out yesterday and today they are College World Series champions pic.twitter.com/YvcXVE4nGp
— Kent (@RealKentMurphy) June 29, 2018
There wasn’t a lot of drama in the clincher as OSU freshman Kent Abel threw a two-hit complete game shutout to pace the Beavers.
“I just kept making pitches and kept getting outs, you know,” Abel told ESPN after the game. “It felt better as the game went on and just kind of rode it out. You know I was going to give it everything I had and I’m, I really appreciate that they let me go out there. It was a lot of fun.”
But the real drama came in Game 2. It was one for the ages.
In the top of the ninth, Arkansas was leading 3-2 and was one out away from its first CWS title. The Razorbacks had won Game 1 Tuesday to go up 1-0 and were looking to close it out.
Pinch runner Zach Clayton stood on third base, 90 feet away from tying the game at 3. OSU’s Cadyn Grenier stepped to the plate, and on a 1-1 count he lofted a pop fly into foul in shallow right field.
https://twitter.com/KSNElliott/status/1012171716523683840
Three players from Arkansas gave chase: first baseman Jared Gates, second baseman Carson Shaddy and the right fielder Eric Cole.
It was not an easy play by any means, but one you have to make to win a championship.
None of the three players gestured to call it. Shaddy came on the hardest from second base to make the play, but he overran it. Gates and Cole pulled up, thinking Shaddy had it, and it dropped right in front of them.
Grenier made the most of the opportunity, singling through the left side of the infield to score Clayton to tie it at 3.
The essence of clutch.
With one strike away from #CWS elimination, Cadyn Grenier ropes a single to tie things up at 3. pic.twitter.com/MJSF4sMIVj
— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) June 28, 2018
Then the next batter, Trevor Larnach, jacked a 2-0 pitch over the fence in right field for a two-run homer to give the Beavers a 5-3 lead.
The Beavers cap off their comeback with a 2-run home run from Trevor Larnach in the ninth to take a 5-3 lead
Relive the action ➡️ https://t.co/gwOJjrGhg2 pic.twitter.com/6z9hX8toQ6
— ESPN Player (@espnplayer) June 28, 2018
After a leadoff single in the bottom of the ninth, OSU reliever Jake Mulholland shut the door and the game was over. The Beavers won 5-3 to tie the series and force a Game 3, which they also won.
“There was probably still that ‘What if?’ and disappointment. It’s human nature,” Razorbacks coach Dave Van Horn said after the game, reported ESPN, referring to the crushing Game 2 loss. “We had a good hitters’ meeting, we let them sleep in, pregame was good. Seemed like they were locked in. But we never got that hit.”
But all credit goes to OSU. While the Razorbacks gave them life, they don’t win that game without some incredibly clutch hitting.
Congrats to Oregon State.
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