Wildcats force rematch with Cowboys
Published 11:30 pm Friday, June 24, 2016
If Arizona defeats Oklahoma State again today, Lamar can say it beat a national finalist during the 2016 baseball season.
Zach Gibbons and J.J. Matijevic each knocked three hits, Cesar Salazar contributed two, and Arizona forced a winner-take-all bracket final with Oklahoma State by winning 9-3 Friday in the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.
The rematch, to determine who will play TCU or Coastal Carolina, is set for today. The best-of-three national championship series begins Monday.
Arizona (46-22) broke open a close game with two runs in the eighth and three in the ninth to lead 9-2 going into Oklahoma State’s final at-bat.
Cameron Ming kept the Cowboys (43-20) off-balance for the final five innings, allowing an earned run on two hits. Nathan Bannister got off to a hot start striking out five in 2 2/3 innings of hitless ball, with Kevin Ginkel giving up two earned runs on two hits in the next 1 1/3.
The Cowboys used five pitchers after the Wildcats battered Jensen Elliott for three earned runs on five hits in the first two innings.
— I.C. Murrell
About I.C. Murrell
I.C. Murrell was promoted to editor of The News, effective Oct. 14, 2019. He previously served as sports editor since August 2015 and has won or shared eight first-place awards from state newspaper associations and corporations. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee, grew up mostly in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and graduated from the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
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