That was a fun day of baseball. The second day of the College World Series is in the books. It was the first time since June 14, 2009 that both games were won on the team’s final at-bat on the same day. TCU scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth to win 3-2 against Texas Tech and Virginia scored one run in the bottom of the ninth to top Ole Miss, 2-1. Check out the guys who helped their team stay in the winners' bracket.
ARTIE LEWICKI, VIRGINIA
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | AB | BF | NP | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 22 |
1.56 |
Artie Lewicki did his job on Sunday night. This Virginia pitcher faced six Ole Miss batters and sent all six Rebels back to the dugout. He combined with Nathan Kirby to toss the first one-hitter at the College World Series in 31 years. It was the second week in a row Lewicki closed out a game and he embraced the challenge. "It's a different experience coming out of the 'pen for sure especially when you're accustomed to starting," he said. "At this point you do whatever you have to do to win ballgames. And coach is going to send me out there I'm going to try to go out do my best and try to collect outs and throw strikes."
MIKE PAPI, VIRGINIA
| AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | PO | A | LOB | Avg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 2 | .314 |
With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Ole Miss elected to take it's chances against Virginia's best hitter, despite first base being unoccupied. Mike Papi made sure the Rebels would regret the decision. Aaron Greenwood ran the count full before Papi drilled the ball into the gap, allowing Nate Irving to score from second. Papi was focused on one thing when he stepped into the batter's box. "Going up there in the bottom of the ninth I was looking for a pitch in the middle of the plate," he said. "Something I could cut in half and line to the out field somewhere." It was the second time in Papi's career he recorded a walk-off. "I mean, simply every walk-off is awesome. It's speechless. You don't know what to say," he said. "But having it done in the College World Series makes it even that much better."
PRESTON MORRISON, TCU
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | AB | BF | NP | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7.1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 26 | 28 | 108 | 1.32 |
The last time Preston Morrison faced Texas Tech, he was knocked around by the Red Raiders. Despite his previous poor showing, TCU skipper Jim Schlossnagle didn't hesitate putting Morrison on the bump. "I know there was some eyebrows raised when we decided to go with Preston," he said. "But I felt like that was the best matchup and it's a pretty easy decision when you have to choose between the Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and a first-rounder [Brandon Finnegan]." While he didn't get the win on Sunday, he pitched a gem of a game. The Big 12 Pitcher of the Year mowed down a career-high 10 as TCU defeated Texas Tech. Morrison is only the third pitcher to have 10 or more strikeouts in a College World Series game at TD Ameritrade Park.
BOOMER WHITE, TCU
| AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | PO | A | LOB | Avg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .318 |
Boomer White drove in the go-ahead run in a dramatic eighth inning, and TCU beat Big 12 rival Texas Tech 3-2 on Sunday. Even before he stood in the box, he knew he had to do was make contact. "All I knew was I can get to the infield, Cody [White] is going to score" he said. "Right before I walked up, Kyle [Bacak] told me, 'If you ever see the seams, the two-seam looks like a changeup coming in.' [Texas Tech pitcher Jonny Drozd] threw it up there. And I stayed on it just enough to get a good piece of it."
