Baseball finishes 2nd at CWS after 3 straight trips
USC made their third trip to the national championship series in as many years, but the Gamecocks fell to the Arizona Wildcats in two games.
The Gamecocks returned to Omaha with an NCAA-record 21-game postseason win streak on the line. USC's first foe at the College World Series was a familiar one. The Gamecocks knocked off the top-seeded Florida Gators 7-3 behind Michael Roth's 6.1 innings of work. The victory set up another all-SEC matchup, this time with the Arkansas Razorbacks.
Against the Razorbacks, USC's bats fell silent. Arkansas' pitching staff limited the Gamecock lineup to just four hits and the Hogs snapped USC's record streak at 22 postseason victories. The loss sent the Gamecocks to the losers' bracket, while Arkansas moved one game away from reaching the championship series.
In an elimination game against Kent State, the Gamecocks sent Roth to the hill again to keep USC's season alive. The senior responded with a complete game, two-hitter, as USC prevailed 4-1 to extend their stay in Omaha. Roth retired the final 22 batters he faced, as the Gamecocks advanced to a rematch with Arkansas that evening.
In their second elimination contest of the day, USC survived once again, knocking off the Razorbacks 2-0. Freshman Jordan Montgomery, making his first career start in Omaha, struck out six and walked only one, as he and Matt Price combined to limit Arkansas to just three hits. South Carolina became the third team in CWS history to win two full games in the same day, and the first since Holy Cross defeated both Western Michigan and Penn State in the same day in 1952.
With a trip to the championship series on the line the following night, South Carolina came up with their third win in 36 hours, a 3-2 victory over Arkansas. Tyler Webb tossed four innings of scoreless relief and Matt Price picked up his fifth career victory in Omaha to become the winningest pitcher in CWS history. The win set up a championship series between the Gamecocks and the Arizona Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference.
In game one, the Wildcats chased Gamecock starter Forrest Koumas from the mound after just 2.1 innings and opened up a 4-0 lead in the first five innings before winning 5-1. South Carolina's hitters had no answer for Arizona pitcher Konner Wade, who went the distance for the Wildcats. The loss was the first one suffered by USC in the national championship since the title game shifted to the best-of-three format.
For the first time since 2002, the Gamecocks dropped an elimination game at the CWS, as Arizona won game two 4-1 to claim the national championship. The Wildcats used a three-run ninth inning to put the game out of reach. Michael Roth, making his final start for the Gamecocks, went 6.2 innings and ended his CWS career as the record-holder for the most innings and most starts as a pitcher.
Roth, centerfielder Evan Marzilli and first baseman Christian Walker were named to the All-Tournament team.