College Baseball Super Regionals 2019: Results, Highlights, Bracket from Sunday
June 9, 2019
The 2019 NCAA super regionals continued across the country Sunday, with the No. 1 overall-seeded UCLA Bruins suffering a shocking upset to end their season.
UCLA lost to Michigan on Friday before beating the Wolverines in extra innings Saturday. A berth in the College World Series was on the line Sunday, but it was the underdog that came away with the road victory to get to Omaha.
Vanderbilt was fortunate enough to avoid the same fate as the No. 2 overall-seeded Commodores came through with a big win in Game 3 after they split the first two with Duke.
Below is an overview of how Sunday unfolded in the super regionals.
Sunday Results
No. 1 North Carolina def. No. 2 Auburn, 2-0
No. 1 Ole Miss def. No. 1 Arkansas, 13-5
No. 1 Vanderbilt def. No. 3 Duke, 13-2
No. 3 Florida State def. No. 1 LSU, 5-4 (12 innings)
No. 1 Texas Tech def. No. 1 Oklahoma State, 8-6
No. 1 Mississippi State def. No. 1 Stanford, 8-1
No. 3 Michigan def. No. 1 UCLA, 4-2
Bracket
Updated bracket at NCAA.com.
Sunday Recap
North Carolina 2, Auburn 0
A combined effort from Austin Bergner and Austin Love kept North Carolina's season alive as the Tar Heels beat Auburn 2-0.
The Heels got on the board in the top of the first inning with a two-run single by Ike Freeman.
Despite having the bases loaded and only one out, North Carolina couldn't get another run across the plate.
It didn't matter in the end, as Bergner and Love were dealing. The pair also got some help from their defense.
Bergner went 4.1 innings, allowing four hits and four walks and striking out five. Aside from the first inning, when Auburn loaded the bases with two outs, the Tigers offense couldn't get much going against the junior right-hander.
Love was even more dominant. Auburn mustered only two hits over the final 4.2 innings as the freshman right-hander also notched six strikeouts. According to UNC's official Twitter account, all but nine of Love's 50 pitches were strikes.
The Tar Heels will have a home crowd behind them Monday when they take on the Tigers in Chapel Hill.
Ole Miss 13, Arkansas 5
Arkansas blew out Ole Miss in their first super regional game Saturday. The Rebels returned the favor Sunday, rolling to a 13-5 win.
A two-run homer from Dominic Fletcher gave the Razorbacks an early lead in the first, but Ole Miss dropped three runs in the bottom half of the inning and then five more in the second. Cole Zabowski put the Rebels ahead with a three-run home run to right.
Ole Miss broke the game open on the strength of a Cooper Johnson solo homer and a three-run triple by Tyler Keenan. The pair each went 2-for-5 and combined to drive in five of their team's runs.
A three-run fourth inning breathed some life into Arkansas. The Razorbacks couldn't eat into the deficit further, and the Rebels tacked on five more runs over the sixth and seventh innings.
In addition to Johnson and Keenan, Thomas Dillard helped set the tone from the leadoff spot as well. He went 1-for-3 with two walks—bringing his on-base percentage to .454—and scored three runs. Houston Roth pitched well in relief, too, to help Ole Miss stave off any comeback. He didn't allow a run over the final four innings.
Vanderbilt 13, Duke 2
Vanderbilt sent Duke packing with a comfortable 13-2 victory, with inclement weather the only thing that could silence the Commodores offense.
The two teams had to wait out a storm in Nashville, Tennessee, that forced a lengthy delay. The lightning merely prolonged the inevitable for the Blue Devils, who couldn't recover from a disastrous start.
Vanderbilt led 9-1 after the third inning and 12-2 after the fifth. The Commodores chased Duke starter Bill Chillari out of the game in the second inning, and his replacement, Jack Carey, lasted 1.2 innings before getting the hook.
Vanderbilt leadoff hitter Austin Martin was the standout performer. He opened the first inning with a solo home run and went yard again in the second.
Building such a big lead meant Vanderbilt didn't have to push Mason Hickman too hard. The sophomore right-hander struck out nine and allowed two earned runs on three hits in four innings. Patrick Raby, Zach King and Tyler Brown combined to pitch the final five innings.
Texas Tech 8, Oklahoma State 6
A four-run eighth inning powered Texas Tech to an 8-6 win over Oklahoma State, which ended the Cowboys' NCAA tournament run.
Things were looking good for Oklahoma State in the top half of the eighth. Colin Simpson homered and Andrew Navigato scored on a sacrifice fly to put the Cowboys ahead 6-4.
But Josh Jung opened the bottom of the eighth with a solo homer. Then, with runners on second and third, Kurt Wilson delivered a three-run shot to right-center field.
Oklahoma State looked poised for a comeback in the top of the ninth. Back-to-back walks for Alix Garcia and Cade Cabbiness put runners on first and second with nobody out. But Hueston Morrill struck out and Christian Funk popped out for two quick outs.
Simpson, who was second on the team in home runs (16) before Sunday, had the chance to be the hero. Dane Haveman got Simpson to chase a fastball up and in to end the game.
The Red Raiders are now through to the College World Series for the second straight year and fourth time in program history.
Florida State 5, LSU 4
Florida State was the next team to punch its ticket to the College World Series after beating LSU 5-4 in 12 innings.
Devin Fontenot was nearly untouchable in relief for the Tigers. He pitched 6.1 innings and struck out 11 batters.
Even into the 12th, Fontenot was one strike away from prolonging the game. Mike Salvatore was on second after singling and advancing to second on a wild pitch. On a 2-2 count, Drew Mendoza singled into shallow right and Salvatore scored the winning run with ease.
Antonio Velez was nearly just as good as Fontenot to put the Seminoles in position for the victory. He threw the final 4.2 innings, striking out six and keeping LSU off the board.
One more trip to Omaha, Nebraska, is a great retirement gift for FSU coach Mike Martin, who has already said this year will be his last in the dugout. The impact of the moment was evident by Martin's celebration after the game.
A national championship is the one glaring omission on Martin's Hall of Fame resume. Checking that off the list would truly be a storybook ending to a legendary career.
Mississippi State 8, Stanford 1
Mississippi State punched its ticket to the College World Series with an 8-1 win over Stanford, clinching the best-of-three series in two games.
Dustin Skelton was the star in this one, changing the game with a hit that went down as a bases-clearing triple:
Skelton showcased his ability behind the plate Sunday, throwing out multiple runners and making this great play on a bunt attempt in the fourth inning:
The catcher helped contribute to Saturday's win with a two-run double and came up big once again in Game 2.
Although the game was technically within reach for the next few innings, Elijah MacNamee ended any hope of a Stanford comeback with a three-run home run in the ninth.
With Peyton Plumlee allowing just one run in 6.2 innings, it became an easy win for Mississippi State.
Kyle Stowers led things off in the first inning with a solo home run for Stanford, but that was the end of the scoring for the Cardinal.
Michigan 4, UCLA 2
The No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament has been eliminated, as Michigan pulled off the upset in Sunday's decisive Game 3.
It was all about timely hitting for the Wolverines in the 4-2 upset win.
Ako Thomas had the biggest hit of the day, giving Michigan the lead with a two-run single in the fifth:
Christian Bullock then tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly to give the team an insurance run in the ninth inning.
The pitching was also outstanding, beginning with Tommy Henry and his seven strong innings with only two runs allowed:
UCLA scratched a couple of runs across in the early innings, both coming on RBI groundouts, but Henry was otherwise able to keep the opposing offense in check with six strikeouts and zero walks.
Benjamin Keizer then worked around trouble in the ninth to close out a two-inning save, stranding runners on second and third.
Michigan surprised many by just escaping the regional round in a bracket with Oregon State, but the squad is now headed to the College World Series and shouldn't be counted out in the upcoming week.