Tag: Omaha

Hello, Omaha! Arkansas eliminates North Carolina in walk-off fashion

Arkansas clinched a spot in the College World Series by beating North Carolina in a walk-off Sunday.

Brady Slavens will be forever remembers in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

The senior from Olathe, Kansas, in his senior season, was a hero.

Arkansas rallied from a one-run deficit in the final inning to clinch a spot in the College World Series with a 4-3 win over No. 10 North Carolina. The trip to Omaha, Nebraska, is Arkansas third in the last four years and 11th in school history

Braydon Webb’s RBI groundout tied the game at three after Arkansas loaded the bases in the ninth with nobody out. Slavens followed and took the second pitch just out of the reach of North Carolina second baseman Patrick Alvarez and Peyton Stovall trotted home to the disappointment of the literal home team.

Alvarez had given the Tar Heels the lead in the top after he entered in the seventh as a defensive replacement. He had four hits on the season before his sinking line drive plated Thomas Frick and suggested a Game 3 was on the horizon.

Two straight singles, a walk and Slavens walk-off changed things in a hurry.

Will McEntire went 5 2/3 innings for Arkansas and allowed just three hits and two walks. North Carolina’s runs were scored off his replacement, Kole Ramage.

Arkansas took the lead in the fourth on a Jalen Battles RBI double then made it, 2-0, when Braydon Webb homered in the fifth. They were only two extra-base hits the Diamond Hogs managed on the day.

North Carolina tied it on an RBI groundout and a wild pitch in the seventh.

Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn will be making his 10th trip to the College World Series, eight of which have come while coaching the Razorbacks.

The foundation to Auburn Baseball’s success is consistency

After a disappointing season in 2021, Auburn Baseball is back on track to continue the successes of the 2018 and 2019 teams.

The Auburn Tigers are the hottest team in college baseball. The Tigers swept the competition at last weekend’s Auburn Regional, outscoring their opponents 51-17 in the process.

Auburn dominated the regional in all three aspects. At the plate, Auburn hit 13 long balls, which included a three-home run game by [autotag]Cole Foster[/autotag] in Friday’s regional opener against Southeastern Louisiana. The confidence at the plate translated to the field, as Auburn only committed one error on the weekend. Pitching was also dominant, as the starting pitcher in two of the three games struck out ten batters a piece.

Some teams catch wind and have luck at certain points through the year. For Auburn, they are starting to see their consistent play throughout the season payoff.

Head coach [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag] was quoted as saying “National Championship or bust” following last weekend’s regional win. He says that the team’s consistency has given him trust, as well as the confidence, to make that claim as they head to Oregon State to face the Beavers in this weekend’s Super Regional.

“We got to a certain point in the season where I said I trust this ball club,” said Thompson prior to the team’s departure for Corvallis, Oregon on Thursday. “This is a ball club of consistency. We have never lost more than two games (in a row) over the season. I don’t know if I have had that in my 30 years of coaching, so there’s a model consistency. I have had trust, and now I believe in them.”

The constant play of this team is the product of a solid build up. Prior to the 2020 season that was abruptly ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Auburn had developed into one of the nation’s best programs.

In 2018. Auburn won the Raleigh Regional in similar fashion to last weekend’s Auburn Regional, and appeared in their first Super Regional since 1999 before falling to SEC foe Florida.

Auburn built off that success in 2019 by appearing in their second-straight Super Regional. The Tigers went on to take two-of-three from North Carolina on the road, and went on to make their first appearance in the College World Series since 1997.

After a season of struggles in 2021, Auburn seems to have found their way back on track to getting to the ultimate goal of being national champion. The player’s energy has rubbed off on Thompson.

 “I feel the chip on their shoulder,” says Thompson. “For those guys to come back last season, a lot of people were like “they are done, they are no good”, and for them to trigger back in, I started feeling it last year.” 

Auburn will spend Friday practicing and adjusting to the climate that the state of Oregon presents, then will lock in and begin the Super Regionals late Saturday night against Oregon State. First pitch between the Tigers and Beavers is set for 9 p.m. CDT.

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Monday’s Stillwater Regional final the third-most viewed game since 2006

College baseball fans were glued to their TV’s as they watched Arkansas Baseball defeat Oklahoma State to advance to the Super Regionals.

Arkansas’ regional-clinching victory over Oklahoma State on Monday night was a classic. The game was so exciting, that most college baseball fans could not keep their eyes away from their screens.

ESPN released the broadcast numbers from the game on Thursday and revealed that a total of 531,000 viewers watched Arkansas defeat Oklahoma State to advance to the Super Regionals for the fourth straight season. Dating back to 2006, it was the third most-viewed NCAA baseball regional game on the family of ESPN networks.

After splitting the first two games with Oklahoma State during the Stillwater Regional, the Razorbacks jumped out to a comfortable lead and fought off a late comeback attempt by the Cowboys to grab the 7-3 win.

Leading 5-3 in the 8th inning, freshman [autotag]Hagen Smith[/autotag] was given the task to hold Arkansas’ lead despite the fact that Oklahoma State loaded the bases. He got the job done by striking out the final two batters of the inning. To add insurance, [autotag]Michael Turner[/autotag] sent two runners across the plate in the 9th inning on a double to extend the Razorback lead to 7-3. Smith rode that momentum into the bottom half, where he sat down the Cowboys in order to seal the win.

Arkansas’ season continues in the Super Regionals beginning Saturday at North Carolina. Game one of the best-of-three series begins Saturday at 10 a.m. CDT, and can be seen on ESPN.

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Butch Thompson changes mindset ahead of Super Regionals

As Auburn prepares to play in their third Super Regional in five years, head coach Butch Thompson does not want his team to be satisfied with just reaching Omaha.

Auburn Baseball under head coach [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag] is seeing its’ best stretch since the days of former coach Hal Baird, and it does not appear to be slowing down.

The Tigers swept their competition during last weekend’s Auburn Regional, where they outscored their opponents 51-17 in three games. Next up for Auburn is a trip to the west coast to take on Pac-12 power Oregon State in the Super Regional for a chance to compete in the College World Series for the second time since 2019.

Most programs’ goal at the beginning of the season is to make it to Omaha. But, for Thompson, he wants his team to get in the mindset that they can achieve more than just making it to the College World Series.

“It’s “national championship or bust”, says Thompson. “If you just play the “Omaha” game to get to Omaha, it can be like 2019 or other times that I’ve been where it’s “two and a barbecue.”

Prior to arriving in Auburn to take over the program in 2016, Thompson went to the College World Series once with Mississippi State as an assistant coach, when the Bulldogs finished as national runner-up in 2013. He says that if he wants his team to have a “championship” mindset, it has to start with him.

 “People don’t fail because they aim high and miss, it’s because they aim low and hit.” says Thompson, quoting motivational speaker Les Brown. “For me to not aim high for our program, and start having our guys to envision a national championship, (then) I’m selling our (fans) short, and the potential of our program short.”

Auburn’s quest for the program’s first national championship continues Saturday-Monday in Corvallis, Ore. against the Oregon State Beavers. First pitch of Saturday’s game one is set for 9 p.m. CDT, and can be seen on ESPN2.

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Tale of the Tape: Team Stats – Notre Dame vs. Tennessee

The Irish are gonna need all the luck they can get.

They say you’ve got to beat the best to be the best. Notre Dame has that opportunity in the Super Regionals. The Irish will have to beat top-ranked Tennessee twice in three games to earn that coveted trip to Omaha for the College World Series. But hey, they haven’t gotten this far for no reason, so how tough of an opponent can the Volunteers be?

Oh mercy. The Volunteers aren’t the odds-on favorite to win the whole thing for no reason. Look how good they are at both hitting and pitching. Do I even need to describe what makes them so good?

So yeah, the Irish have their work cut out for them. Their pitching should at least keep them in each game if it’s on, but that might be a tall order. We can see why the Volunteers are where they are, and anyone who can knock them off will become college baseball legends. Hopefully, that’s the Irish.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

NCAA baseball Super Regional schedule and TV information

Which eight teams do you have making it to Omaha?

The NCAA baseball tournament has been downright awesome through the regional round as is down to 16 teams.  Super Regionals are all set to get underway later this week as we knew the matchups as of Monday night but now we know the dates, times, and TV information for all eight Super Regional matchups.

Check out all eight Super Regional schedules below as the next stop for eight teams will be Omaha.

Game 3’s are all if necessary

Notre Dame captains for 2022 season unveiled

Who will lead the Irish into battle this season?

After coming agonizingly close to the College World Series a year ago, Notre Dame is back for more. In order to actually get to Omaha this time, the Irish need people on the roster to rally the others when necessary. Link Jarrett is a terrific coach, but he only can do so much. Sometimes, players have to hear from their own teammates, and that’s where captains come in.

Notre Dame’s baseball players have voted for five of their own to serve as captains for the 2022 season. When asked to comment, Jarrett said the following:

“Each of these guys leads in their own way. They clearly are well respected by their teammates, and being chosen as a captain is an honor they will have ingrained forever. We are very fortunate to have a roster full of wonderful individuals, and these five obviously stand out to all involved.”

Here are the five players who have been elected captains for this season:

Is there a public high school in the U.S. that can rival this Omaha team’s indoor practice facility?

Modeled after a college setup, Westside High School might have the finest public high school indoor golf practice facility in the country.

Kaitlyn Hanna likes to go into The Swede Center before basketball games to work on her putting. Said it helps with her nerves.

She can also get a few clubs out of her locker during lunch or after her homework is complete at Westside High School in Omaha, Nebraska, and go to work on one of the school’s simulators.

“They’re definitely jealous,” said Hanna of friends who play at rival high schools. “Every once in a while they’ll be like ‘Oh I want to transfer to Westside.’ ”

Inside Westside’s The Swede Center (Photo by Tom Kessler)

And who could blame them? Modeled after what’s often seen on college campuses, Westside is now home to what’s surely one of the finest – if not the finest – public high school indoor golf practice facilities in the country.

“We’re big on just giving every kid opportunities to try new passions,” said Terry Hanna, development director for the Westside Community Schools Foundation and Hanna’s father.

The facility, which was officially dedicated last February, features putting and chipping areas, two hitting bays, a players’ lounge and locker room. It’s situated behind the gym in what was once considered an unusable space. Because so much of the electrical was already in place, the total cost of the project was $350,000.

Kaitlyn, a two-time state champion who has committed to play college golf at Iowa, enjoys reading about the history of the program that lines the walls of the Swede Center. For her part, she constructed a piece of wall art in the shape of a “W” made out of 9,300 golf tees.

The facility was funded entirely by donations – 61 donors in all – and the lead gift came from the Carlson family. Scott Carlson said one of the main reasons they wanted to get involved with the center was to connect an endowed scholarship in their father’s name. That and Merrill “Swede” Carlson loved golf, shooting his age every year from age 69 to 84 at the Field Club.

“When this opportunity came by it just seemed to be a perfect fit for my dad,” said Scott, who attended Westside along with his siblings.

One aspect of the facility that his father would appreciate the most, Scott said, is the way it involves the entire community.

Inside Westside’s The Swede Center (Photo by Tom Kessler)

There are 6,000 students within the district – one high school, one middle school and 10 elementary schools. Youth clinics hosted by members of the girls and boys golf teams at Westside are at the heart of the project’s mission.

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WATCH: Texas’ Eric Kennedy hits clutch home run to erase Tennessee’s lead in College World Series

Texas left fielder Eric Kennedy had a monster three-run home run on Tuesday in the College World Series against Tennessee.

After falling behind two runs in the second inning of their elimination game against Tennessee in the College World Series, Texas’ left fielder Eric Kennedy snatched back the momentum for the Longhorns in a spectacular way hitting his fourth home run of the season. His three-run moonshot gave Texas their first lead over an opponent in Omaha.

Kennedy’s home run was the first sign of significant offense for Texas and it could not have come in a more timely manner. The Longhorns are currently 0-1 in Omaha, where a win keeps their season alive and a loss sends them packing back to Austin.

Just like the rest of the Longhorns starting nine, Kennedy had a rough game at the plate against Mississippi State’s Will Bednar, who had a brilliant performance that consisted of having the Longhorns looking foolish at the plate all game. Bednar had 15 strikeouts in six innings alone and Texas eventually struck out a total of 21 times.

Tune in to ESPNU to watch Texas and Tennessee fight to stay alive in the College World Series.

WATCH: LeBron James shows off his Peyton Manning impersonation

NBA star LeBron James demonstrates his quarterback ability.

During a training session last month, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James showed off his Peyton Manning impersonation by calling an “Omaha” audible at the line of scrimmage before completing a pass to teammate Anthony Davis.

James isn’t the first athlete to imitate Manning’s signature “Omaha” cadence. Last summer, USWNT rising star Mallory Pugh showed off her Manning impersonation during a soccer practice at the Rose Bowl Stadium.

On an episode of Peyton’s Places last fall, Manning explained the meaning behind calling “Omaha” at the line of scrimmage.

“It was a rhythmic three-syllable word,” Manning said. “[It] meant we had changed the play, usually after kind of calling two plays in the huddle.

“All of a sudden, the defense shifts late and there’s just a few seconds left on the play clock, and so ‘Omaha’ meant we’re going to Plan B and this ball’s about to be snapped.”

Manning, 44, retired from the NFL after winning Super Bowl 50 with the Broncos in 2016. He will be eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2021.

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