Game Three: #7 TCU 10, #2 LSU 3
For the first three innings, the Horned Frogs of Texas Christian University were held without a baserunner by LSU starting pitcher Jared Poche’. That changed in a big way in the fourth and fifth innings as TCU scored six runs, three unearned thanks to three LSU errors, to chase Poche’ from the game en route to a 10-3 victory over the No. 2 national seed Tigers.
Horned Frogs senior center fielder Cody Jones went 0-for-3 at the plate, but thanks to two errors and two hit-by-pitches he was able to reach base four times, scoring a game-high three runs and driving in another. He also stole two bases and gunned down LSU senior second baseman Jared Foster at home plate in a scoreless game in the bottom of the third inning to turn the tide of what been a pitcher’s duel for the first three innings.
“Up until that point I felt the game was neck and neck,” TCU senior third baseman Derek Odell said. “There was no momentum on either side because the pitchers were kind of mowing hitters down up until then. But you the throw, and just a play like that all in all is uplifting and that really got our dugout going.”
After TCU scored two runs in the fourth inning and four more in the fifth, Odell helped cap off the day with a two-run double in the seventh inning as part of another four-run inning that put the Horned Frog up 10-1 with nine outs remaining. The senior third baseman entered the day hitting .438 with with 10 runs batted in, but after a 2-for-5 day at the plate his postseason batting average now sits at .471 after recording the first two hits of College World Series career. Entering the game he had been 0-for-14 lifetime in the tournament.
“I think I’m just getting my pitch to hit,” Odell said of his strong performance in this year’s postseason. “I’m being patient up there and it sound pretty simple, but I’m letting the bad ones go and I’m waiting on the one that I want to hit, and I’m ready for the fastball. When I get it, I’m not missing it. I guess it’s just as simple as that.”
While TCU was piling on runs and while LSU was kicking the ball around the infield to the tune of four errors, Horned Frogs senior ace Preston Morrison was stifling any hopes of a comeback by the potent Tigers’ offense. Morrison allowed just one run on five hits over seven innings of work. He struck out five and didn’t walk or hit a single batter, departing with a 10-1 lead after 89 pitches as he improved his record to 12-3 on the season.
“I thought Preston caught a rhythm,” TCU head coach Jim Schlossnagle said. “We played really good defense behind him, especially [senior second baseman Garrett Crain]. Preston pitching so well I think took some wind out of their sails.”
Of the five hits Morrison allowed, only one, a double by LSU center fielder Andrew Stevenson in the second inning, went for extra bases. He didn’t give the Tigers, who came into the game ranked fourth in the country with a .316 team batting average, many opportunities all day to pick up steam.
“He was throwing three pitches for strikes,” LSU junior shortstop Alex Bregman said of the Horned Frogs ace. “That’s what he’s done his whole career. He’s the winningest pitcher in TCU history for a reason He’s a competitor, and he got a lot of weak contact. He lived off the barrel towards the end of the bat. We didn’t get him up in the zone enough today.”
The Horned Frogs move on to play the winner of Vanderbilt/Cal State Fullerton. LSU will await the loser of that game for a 2:00 p.m. contest on Tuesday afternoon. They’ll have National Freshman of the Year Alex Lange (11-0, 1.89 ERA) ready to go on the mound for whomever they face. Tigers head coach Paul Mainieri expects the best out of his young hurler despite the inexperience on the College World Series stage.
“I expect he’ll go out and pitch the way he has all year,” Mainieri said. “He’ll attack hitters and hopefully get ahead of hitters and use his pitches the way he has all year. He’s been outstanding for us. He’s handled every challenge that’s come his way. He’s been totally composed and poised, and a great competitor. I know one thing, he’ll give his very best effort, and that’s all I’ll ask of him.”
Game Three Highlights
Top of the 4th: Jared Poche’ was perfect through the first three innings for LSU. However, some costly mistakes in the fourth made his second trip through the TCU lineup a difficult one. Cody Jones and Jeremie Fagnan each grounded harmlessly back to the mound, but Poche’ airmailed two throws to first base putting Jones and Fagnan on the corners with no outs for the Horned Frogs. Connor Wanhanen cashed in the first mistake with a line drive RBI single into center field to score Jones. Two hitters later Dane Steinhagen plated the second unearned run with an RBI single through the middle of the infield to put TCU ahead 2-0.
Bottom of the 4th: The Tigers started to rally immediately against Preston Morrison in the bottom half. Singles by Alex Bregman and Kade Scivicque put men on base with no outs. After a double steal on a ground out to short by Connor Hale, center fielder Andrew Stevenson got LSU on the board with a grounder to second that was deep enough to score Bregman and cut the Horned Frogs’ lead to 2-1.
Top of the 5th: If the fourth inning was a sign that the wheels were starting to loosen for Jared Poche’, then the fifth inning is when they fell completely off, and in a hurry. The trouble started with a four-pitch walk to Keaton Jones with one out. After a single and a wild pitch put runners in scoring position, Poche’ walked Garrett Crain on four pitches to load the bases. A fielding error by Conner Hale scored a run and kept the bags full of Horned Frogs, then Poche’ hit Fagnan with a pitch and gave up a two-run single to Wanhanen to turn a 3-1 game into a 6-1 lead for TCU.
Top of the 7th: The Horned Frogs dropped another four-spot on LSU in the seventh, just in case the Bayou Bengals were thinking of pulling a, well a TCU, by erasing a big deficit in the late innings to win the game like the Horned Frogs did in the Fort Worth Regional title game against NC State when they trailed 8-1 with four outs to go. Cody Jones once again was the catalyst for the TCU offense. The senior center fielder was hit by a pitch delivered by LSU junior left-hander Hunter Devall with one out. Jones then stole second, and third, and scooted home when the throw down to third bounced off his knee and trickled away. After a walk and a base hit, the Horned Frogs got another RBI single from Dane Steinhagen, and a two-run double by Derek Odell to push their lead out to 10-1 as they cruised into the winner’s bracket.
Game Four: Cal State Fullerton 3, Vanderbilt 0 (Suspended)
Heavy rain washed out any chances of the Titans and Commodores playing a full game. Action will resume on Monday morning at 11:05 a.m. with Vanderbilt batting in the bottom of the sixth inning with a runner on third base and two outs. Cal State Fullerton will have a 3-0 lead when play starts back up.
