Virginia ace Danny Hultzen and Tyler Wilson did their part from the start.
It took the Cavaliers’ offense a lot longer to get going. Finally they scratched out enough for a 4-1 College World Series victory over California yesterday in Omaha, Neb.
John Hicks’ single in the seventh inning broke a scoreless tie in what until then had been the longest 0-0 game at the CWS since 1987.
“We had confidence the whole time,” Hicks said. “Their pitchers did an unbelievable job of keeping them in the game until we strung a few hits together. We had to get a ball in the air or in the middle of the field and then we’d score a run, but we didn’t come up with the clutch hit. We knew we’d get on the board.”
Steve Proscia followed Hicks’ hit with a sacrifice fly, and the Cavaliers added two more runs in the eighth.
The No. 1 seed Cavaliers (55-10) move to a Bracket 2 winners’ game against South Carolina tomorrow night. Cal (37-22) meets Texas A&M in an elimination game tomorrow afternoon.
Before Hicks’ run-scoring single, the Cavaliers had gone 1 for 11 with runners in scoring position.
Hultzen and Wilson were within an out of combining for the first CWS shutout in five years before Chad Bunting hit a run-scoring single over shortstop with two outs in the ninth.
Hultzen, the No. 2 overall draft pick by the Seattle Mariners, allowed three hits over 6 1/3 innings. He walked three and struck out six. He effectively mixed his 94-mph fastball with his slider and changeup.
“Danny Hultzen, as advertised, the second pick of the draft. He’s tough. A little bend but no break, and I have to give him a lot of credit for making the big out when he had to,” Cal coach David Esquer said.
S. Carolina 5, Texas A&M 4
Scott Wingo drilled a bases-loaded single off the right-field wall in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift defending national champion South Carolina past Texas A&M and advance to the Bracket 2 winners’ game against Virginia.
Wingo’s winning hit against Nick Fleece capped his career-best four-hit night, and he reached base five times.
Robert Beary doubled off the right-field fence to start the inning against Kyle Martin (2-3). Beary went to third when 2010 CWS Most Outstanding Player Jackie Bradley Jr. sliced a liner into left off Fleece. Evan Marzilli walked to load the bases.
Michael Roth, John Taylor and Matt Price (6-3) combined to hold the Aggies hitless in the last five innings.
