OMAHA, Neb. It’s sometimes just you and your night. Sometimes that night happens to be on the largest stage your sport offers, such as the opening stanza at the finals of the best-of-3 Men’s College World Series.
Saturday night was Ole Miss night. Now it’s time to recreate that Mississippi magic one more time.
Tim Elko was the mustachioed team’s first baseman, captain, motivational speaker, and, as of Saturday night a member the College World Series statistical elite. “There is still much to do. We will enjoy every minute of it, it was special, and we will never forget it.
The Rebels defeated Oklahoma 10-3 The game was intense into the last innings but quickly turned into a rout. A team that was one win away is the last remaining team in the 64-team NCAA Baseball tournament.
“I have been doing it for a while and I’ve never felt anything or heard anything in a college stadium like tonight,” said Mike Bianco of Ole Miss. He has participated in the College World Series six different times, including as a head coach, assistant coach, and catcher.
“We have incredible atmospheres at [home stadium] Swayze Field, but the atmosphere tonight, that was almost like a football game. It seems like half of Mississippi was in Omaha today to see something special. They felt it was happening based on the energy emanating from those stands.
The feeling was overwhelming from the moment they arrived in town to Saturday’s arrival at Charles Schwab Field. As the crowd poured in, the stadium was filled with powder-blue-clad fans. They were given a giveaway item by the ballpark title sponsor. It was a towel to wave that had been dyed in the company’s trademark color of powder blue. It was an accident. Maybe.
Tim Davis, a Memphis-based salesman, said, “Naw, this isn’t coincidence,” as he began to swirl his towel high above his head. “This is destiny, my son!”
The 25,813 people in attendance were all dressed in the same blue as the Oklahoma game. They were ready for Oklahoma’s powerful offense to start accelerating early. Ole Miss scored two runs in the opening inning, and one in each of the third and fourth innings. Everyone was expecting to see the huge on-paper advantage Oklahoma had over Oklahoma with Jake Bennett, their ace, on the pitch after a week of rest. Instead, Ole Miss reliever Jack Dougherty pitched five complete innings of perfect ball and combined with sophomore Josh Mallitz, true freshman, and Mason Nichols, to win the game. Hunter Elliott will start Sunday afternoon, having been off for five days.
“One game at a time is a sports cliché, I know,” Elko said. But that’s the way you do it.
The fifth-year senior was 4-for-5 at the plate. This was the first MCWS finals game with four hits since 2009. Justin Bench, T.J. McCants, Calvin Harris, and Justin Bench blasted back to back-to-back-toback homers to the top of the eighth. They were the first team to do this since LSU in 1998, and the only one at Charles Schwab Field since the series began in 2011.
It was a remarkable, unexpected, overwhelming performance. The de facto home crowd punctuated the event. Also, eleven of 18 teams who won the title jumped from a 1-0 start to the best-of-three format since 2003.
These Sooners aren’t interested in the past.
“I’m glad that this happened …”
Wait… What?
Blake Robertson, Oklahoma’s first baseman, said that “We’re going from our lesson.” He was more than a little red as he answered postgame questions about his 1 for 4 performance and the loss.
“We’ve been doing it all season. Florida was taken care of in Florida [during the NCAA Gainesville Regional]. Took care of business and went to Virginia Tech. I do not believe that a home crowd would be a good fit. [Ole Miss] It does not matter. “I think we enjoy being quiet.”
Both victories in enemy territory were achieved in elimination games. Sooners fans will recall another less depressing MCWS finals statistic on Sunday: All three past national champions have come back from losing Game 1 and won it all.
The Sooner Schooner is the program that actually owns a wagon.
“That’s what makes baseball so great. You can go 4-for-4 and 5-for-5, then the next you can go 1-for-4 and 0-for-5. “Skip Johnson, Oklahoma coach, said that he has much of his Omaha experience as a result of being an assistant under Augie Garcia at Texas.
“We woke up this morning to win two more games. We will wake up [Sunday] It happens every morning. It happens.
Sometimes it’s just you and your night. Let’s now see who will have their day.