Oklahoma pitching holds Georgia at bay, Sooners improve to 2-0 at CWS
By Ethan Stone
Published:
The Oklahoma Sooners are 2-0 in the College World Series.
Thanks to a strong effort from starter Xander Mercurius, as well as a hot first inning that saw 3 runs score, the Sooners downed Georgia 4-3 and are just one win away from the College World Series final.
Mercurius set the tone, keeping the electric Bulldogs offense to just 3 runs across 7.1 innings of work and throwing a season-high 9 strikeouts. However, as Mercurius’ arm started to wear and Georgia began to inch back into the game, Oklahoma made the turn to Jackson Cleveland.
That proved to be the correct move. Cleveland threw 2 strikeouts of his own across the final 2 frames, allowing just 2 hits and zero runs to seal the deal. Here’s a look at the final out, with the tying run at second:
Oklahoma’s offense did just enough in the 1st and 4th innings. Jaxon Willits gave the Sooners a 3-run lead with this swing of the bat:
And Brendan Brock’s oppo taco proved to be the winning run in the 4th:
As for Georgia, the Bulldogs will face off against the Texas Longhorns on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. ET. The winner of that game will face Oklahoma on Wednesday, needing 2 wins to advance to the CWS final.
Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.
