College World Series Finals 2016: Arizona vs. CCU Game 1 Score and Reaction

Date	Score	Time (ET)	Network	Live Stream
Monday, June 27	3-0 Arizona	7 p.m.	ESPN	WatchESPN
Tuesday, June 28	-	8 p.m.	ESPN	WatchESPN
Wednesday, June 29 (If Necessary)	-	8 p.m.	ESPN	WatchESPN

Thanks to a complete game from starter JC Cloney, the Arizona Wildcats are only one win away from their fifth national championship in school history after defeating the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers 3-0 in Game 1 of the 2016 College World Series finals Monday.

In a tight affair, Cloney threw a gem to the tune of four hits allowed and six strikeouts. Two RBI from Ryan Aguilar proved to be plenty of run support as the Wildcats tamed a strong Coastal Carolina lineup.

The Chanticleers will need to win Tuesday to force a decisive Game 3.

Here is a look at the upcoming schedule:

After Cody Ramer opened the game with a double, Aguilar drove him in with a single two batters later to give Arizona an early lead it would not relinquish. Quick starts have typically worked out well for the Wildcats in Omaha, Nebraska, per Baseball America's Michael Lananna:

The game remained quiet until the Wildcats exploded for some insurance runs in the seventh inning. Cesar Salazar singled early in the frame, before a groundout and wild pitch moved him to third base. He eventually scored on a sacrifice fly by Zach Gibbons.

After Ramer drew a walk, Aguilar brought him home with another RBI single to seal the deal for Arizona.

NCAA Baseball provided a unique look at Aguilar's critical swing:

Coastal Carolina starter Zack Hopeck pitched well, but he was doomed by the nonexistent run support. He finished the day with two earned runs and five hits allowed in 6.1 innings. 

The Chanticleers were only once able to move a runner to third base.

Hopeck received a nice reception from the crowd as he left, which may have been an acknowledgment of the heavy burden his team forced him to carry, per D1Baseball's Aaron Fitt:

Both teams were long shots to make it this far. Arizona got past a phenomenal Mississippi State team to reach the College World Series before getting past Miami and Oklahoma State to reach the finals.

Not to be outdone, Coastal Carolina downed LSU in the Super Regionals and beat additional powerhouses Florida and TCU to continue its Cinderella story as one of the last two teams standing in Omaha.

Per ESPN Stats & Info, the two sides were evenly matched heading into their series:

The Chanticleers' power advantage stood out, as they have relied heavily on the long ball to generate offense. Yet Cloney shut down their powerful lineup Monday.

He, along with fellow starters Nathan Bannister and Bobby Dalbec, has been a key reason for Arizona's success, per TSN's Ryan Young:

The performance would have been a waste if not for Ramer, though. Entering the day with a .345 batting average, he continued his stellar play and put himself in position to score two crucial runs.

Ramer has been a catalyst for Arizona as of late, per Fitt:

The second baseman also got it done on defense, as NCAA Baseball showed:

"

Great game today @ArizonaBaseball - let's get one more! #BearDown

— Sean Miller (@UACoachMiller) June 28, 2016"

Arizona has shown that it can win in a variety of ways. It overcame Oklahoma State's strong pitching staff twice in the prior round to reach the College World Series finals, and it has shown it can win with stingy pitching of its own.

Yet Coastal Carolina has been in this spot before. It beat TCU twice in a row to reach the finals while scrapping out of the elimination bracket. The team has refused to fold, and there is no reason to believe it will go down without a fight Tuesday.

Postgame Reaction

Following his epic 122-pitch shutout, Cloney did not appear worn out from his marathon performance, per Eric Olson of the Associated Press.

"I'm not really tired right now. The adrenaline is still going," Cloney said. "I'm still trying to figure out what just happened."

Coastal Carolina's Michael Paez explained how Cloney's pitching strategy kept him and his teammates off balance, per Olson.

"You want to sit on a fastball, and he throws you a cutter. And you sit on the off-speed, and he throws a fastball," said Paez.

Arizona's basketball team took to Twitter support the Wildcats baseball squad, including head coach Sean Miller and guard Allonzo Trier:

With a win Tuesday, the team would clinch its second national title since 2012.

Statistics are courtesy of NCAA.com unless otherwise noted.