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Dirtbags
fall to Arizona, eliminated
By
Trent Loomis
Online
Forty-Niner
Having
the best college pitcher in the nation,
home-field advantage and an early season
sweep of Arizona weren't enough to get the
Dirtbags over the Super Regional hump this
year falling to the Wildcats in a best of
three game series this past weekend at Blair
Field.
The
Dirtbags who ended the season at 41-20 have
been on the College World Series doorstep
three years in a row falling short this
year to the Wildcats who were able to score
key runs in the late innings in both of
their wins to overcome a season of adversity.
It
was a weekend of squandered opportunity
for the Dirtbags, which should have swept
the series only to have another strong pitching
performance go to waste in the ninth inning.
In
the first game, Long Beach threw their heralded
ace Jared Weaver at the Wildcats only to
have them throw the kitchen sink back.
137 pitches (the most Weaver has thrown
all season) and a 5-2 lead heading into
the ninth wasn't enough to stop a persistent
Arizona come-back to steal game one from
a shaky bullpen and a sellout crowd of 3,004.
The
Dirtbags took a 5-2 lead into the ninth
inning before Arizona rallied for four runs
off of beleaguered reliever Neil Jameson
to steal the first game in front of a stunned
crowd.
"Of
course it hurts going into the ninth with
a three run lead," catcher Brad Davis
who went 3-4 with a run batted in said.
After
the demoralizing loss on Friday, the Dirtbags
showed their grit on Saturday with a 9-4
victory evening the series at one a piece.
Josh
Buhagiar and Troy Tulowitzki both went 3-5
driving in two runs each, with Tulowitzki
adding a homerun.
Starting
pitcher Cesar Ramos allowed four runs on
eight hits and two walks, improving to 12-4
with the win.
The
story of the game was not just the offense
put up by Long Beach, but the defense, or
lack thereof by the Wildcats.
"We
are happy to play another day. Arizona helped
us today by not making some plays. Usually
that is us, but today, we took advantage
of their mistakes," Long Beach Head
Coach Mike Weathers said.
Saturday's
win set up a winner take all game on Sunday
in front of another sell-out crowd at Blair
Field.
Once
again the Dirtbags took a lead into the
latter innings only to have Arizona score
the unearned run in the top of the 11th
inning to advance to the College World Series
in Omaha.
"First,
I would like to congratulate Arizona and
wish them good luck in Omaha," Weathers
said after the elimination. "Both teams
played a great weekend. I thought we played
exceptionally well today. I think today's
game could be compared to a boxing fight—both
teams took blocks and weathered many storms.
Each team got knocked down and then got
back up."
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