SantaFeToday.com Santa Fe’s Hometown News
By Arnie Leshin
For two teams that battled away in what became a 3-game series to decide who is headed to the NCAA Division I National College Baseball World Series, it certainly ended in an unbelievable way.
After Texas won Game 1, 7-5, at Stanford’s Klein Field in Sunken Diamond, and the Cardinal won Game 2, 8-3, to even things in the best-of-3 Super Regional series, it concluded in the last of the ninth inning Monday night.
How?, well it was 6-6, two out, one on, when Cardinal second baseman Drew Browser lifted a high fly ball that the centerfielder, right fielder, shortstop and second baseman all lost in the lights, and down it dropped as Stanford raced from the dugout to celebrate making it to Thursday’s start of the CWS in Omaha, Neb.
It appeared to be Campbell’s ball, but he just watched it fall and his teammates were stunned. It was considered a normal outfield out, but instead proved to be the game-winner, and a brutal way to wind things up. Good news for the Stanford home crowd and shocking for the visitors.
The Longhorns had rallied on two occasions in this game, finally tying it in the eight frame on an RBI single off the bat of Browser, who was batting .339 with 13 home runs, 48 RBI, and on a 38-game hitting streak.
“A tough, tough way to lose,” said Browser, “I feel bad for us, we played each game with aggression, battled back, and down it went.”
But for the Cardinal, it was total jubilation. It couldn’t believe what it was seeing, but now gained one of the two remaining spots, the other went to Tennessee with a 5-0 triumph over Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss., Monday.
The No. 7 Volunteers (42-20) scored once in the first inning, two in the third, one in the fourth, and added another in the sixth as starter Drew Beam went seven innings with 100 pitches, and Chase Burns was stellar in relief facing five batters and striking four out. They came up with eight hits and played errorless ball.
Southern Mississippi, ranked No. 6, was also flawless in the field, but could only manage six hits, all singles.
The other spots in this CWS belong to No. 1-ranked Wake Forest, 51-10 and in the World Series for the first time since 1955, and No. 2 Florida, No. 3 Virginia, No. 4 Louisiana State, No. 5 Texas Christian, and unranked Oral Roberts, the Cinderella team in the group and 2-game winner in Eugene over Oregon.
