8-2 victory over UConn secures spot in Omaha at CWS
Faced with an identical situation Sunday against Connecticut, the sophomore first baseman provided an identical answer.
With the score tied 2-2 in the eighth, Walker launched the second pitch of the inning just over the left field wall, giving South Carolina its first lead of the night and sparking a six-run rally over the final two frames.
The offensive barrage silenced the Huskies for good, as Matt Price proceeded to close out UConn in the ninth to secure the 8-2 victory and punch USC's ticket to Omaha for the second consecutive year.
"I'm delighted to be a part of it," USC coach Ray Tanner said. "I know that when I came here 15 years ago, this was a program about great people, tradition and history. It was my challenge to try to continue that. We've been very fortunate to have some opportunities to get out to Omaha, and then we had the great run last year. It's very special. I'm just happy to be a part of it."
Following Walker's go-ahead blast in the eighth, Carolina's bats gave Price a sizeable cushion in the ninth. After a Brady Thomas sacrifice fly and Jake Williams' hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded extended the lead to 5-2, Peter Mooney broke the inning open with a two-RBI double into the right-center field gap. A sacrifice groundout by Robert Beary one batter later put the finishing touches on the five-run ninth.
"It was a huge relief," Mooney said. "I didn't think the baseball gods were going to let that happen to me. Finally, I dropped one in and got two RBIs out of it. That way we were able to get some more insurance runs."
From there, Price, who also held UConn at bay in the eighth, kept the Husky bats in check, striking out the final two batters to give Carolina the win.
"It's a great feeling," Price said. "We're going to be back in Omaha in the new park. This is a new group of guys. Last year was last year. It's a new year and it's going to be a great one."
Carolina's series-clinching victory proved to be just as challenging as its 5-1 win a day earlier, which also saw the Huskies jump out to an early lead. After struggling early against first-round draft pick Matt Barnes in the first two innings, the Gamecocks managed to get to the hard-throwing right-hander over the next three, eventually chasing him in the fifth.
Leading 2-1 with outfielder Steven Neff at second, second baseman Scott Wingo kicked off the rally with an RBI single to center, his second of the night. Walker managed to drive him in with a single of his own one batter later, then Thomas completed the three-run inning with a base-hit to center, ultimately putting the game out of reach.
"The first inning, they came out strong," Walker said. "After that, we kind of settled down and swung at the pitches we wanted to swing at and started doing stuff we wanted to do. At the same time, after we settled down, we had some better at-bats."
On the other side of the ball, left-hander Michael Roth continued to do what he's done all season by providing another stellar pitching performance en route to his 13th victory of the season. The junior went 8.1 innings while allowing six hits and one unearned run while striking out two. The win was also his third over a pitcher selected in the first round of the 2011 MLB Draft.
"I can't tell you that I knew he was going to go like he has for us and go deep into games and get wins against great teams like he has all the time," Tanner said. "I thought he would be special, but not like this. He continues to just do it. He is a guy that doesn't let a lot of things enter into it. He just goes out, plays and just tries help his team win."
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