LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – In a game that began just over 24 hours before it eventually ended, the University of Louisville baseball team stayed alive in the College World Series by putting away Auburn 5-3 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha in the resumption of a suspended elimination game from Tuesday.
Tyler Fitzgerald got the Cardinals started with a solo home run in the first on Tuesday and the Cards took advantage of a two-run error by Auburn second-baseman Ryan Bliss in the third, then had to wait all night after the game was suspended with a 4-1 score after four innings.
The teams traded runs after play resumed, then Louisville held on, getting Auburn to leave the bases loaded in the eighth and ending the game with the potential tying run at the plate in the ninth to advance to a game tomorrow against the loser of today’s Vanderbilt-Mississippi State winner’s bracket game.
Louisville got two innings from Adam Elliott and two from Michael McAvene before Michael Kirian picked up his fifth save of the season. Louisville won its 50th game, against 17 losses. Auburn finishes 38-28.
"I'm really proud of our guys because I thought our bullpen did what we needed them to do," Louisville coach Dan McDonnell said after the game. "Offensively we've put together some rallies. We're close. We haven't exploded yet; that's the exciting thing. But we played defense, and when you pitch and you make some plays the way we did, some diving plays in the outfield, some great plays in the infield -- we played well enough to win. And as I've learned, it's not easy winning out here, and they don't give you anything. You've got to earn it. So I'm really proud of these guys right here and their teammates for how hard they fought."
The two shutout innings by Elliott were key. Louisville needed a good start after the resumption of play, and the former St. X standout set the tone. He said he treated the appearance like a bullpen stint, even though it was unusual.
"We obviously started talking about it yesterday during the rain delay," McDonnell said. "You could go to Nick Bennett because it's like a start, and you've got five innings. You'd be happy if he gave you five innings and you win the game. But then you look at the rest of the week and you're like, man, we just burned up two starters in one game. And we trust our bullpen. And I asked (pitching) coach (Roger) Williams. He said Adam Elliott was the guy. Elliott has got that toughness about him. He's like a -- he's a position player, so he'll love hearing me say that about him. He's been a two-way player in his career. He's just had some back issues, so we didn't let him swing this year.
"But he's just got that ballplayer mentality, and I just like the way how Coach Williams, no sense telling him last night, no sense telling him at breakfast this morning, don't get him all worked out, wait until about an hour or so before the game. Not that we're trying to keep a secret from anybody. I think I had told other people we were going to go with Elliott, but just letting him know in obviously plenty of time where he wouldn't overextend himself early, and we've got to trust our bullpen."
Louisville got a chance to blow the game open in the eighth after a Drew Campbell single scored Jake Snider and put U of L up 5-2 with two on and nobody out. But Justin Lavey then popped out trying to bunt, Trey Leonard was picked off second and Henry Davis struck out.
McDonnell went with McAvene in the seventh inning, giving the closer his first work since being ejected in the regional and having to serve a four-game suspension. He gave up a run and five hits in two innings of work, though he did get a big strikeout to get out of a bases-loaded jam in the eighth.
"It's been one of our advantages this year," McDonnell said. "We felt like all along we've had two closers, and we needed one when we lost McAvene in the regionals, and Kirian has always stepped up and did a nice job."
In the ninth, Kirian gave up a home run to Conor Davis and a double to Steven Williams to bring the tying run to the plate, but ended the game on a strikeout.
“We got a rally,” McDonnell told ESPN. “We messed that one inning up. But what’s the key to this? Making pitches, making plays and getting timely hitting, and we got just enough.”
The Cards got some big plays in the field from right fielder Drew Campbell, who also had a key RBI single late in the game.
"He's played really good the last month or so, and one of the reasons he was drafted, he's a good player," McDonnell said. "He's played center field for us, he's played right field. And people who know our park, our center field and right field, you've got to be good defensively, man. It's big in that gap, and with the sun and the wind. He's played really good."
Copyright 2019 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
