After giving up a 6-3 lead in the top of the ninth, Louisville (42-23) got a walk off sac fly from Eddie King, Jr. to secure a 7-6 win over #8 Oregon State (48-16-1).
Louisville got its revenge on Oregon State, after the Beavers had walked off the Cardinals in their previous meeting last Friday. The Cardinals now face #13 seed Coastal Carolina on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET, needing to beat the Chanticleers on Wednesday and Thursday to advance to the finals. Coastal Carolina currently rides a 25-game win streak heading into Wednesday, and has not lost back-to-back games since March 22-23 against Troy.
Eddie King, Jr. got things started for Louisville in the first inning, driving an RBI single into left field to put the Cardinals ahead 1-0. A two-run homer from Jake Munroe in the third extended Louisville’s lead to 3-0.
Oregon State’s Jacob Krieg got two runs back for the Beavers in the fourth, knocking a two-run homer to cut their deficit to 3-2. Zion Rose’s solo home run in the bottom part of the inning pushed Louisville’s lead to 4-2.
The Beavers and Cardinals each traded runs in the sixth inning, with Oregon State’s Canon Reader scoring a run on a fielder’s choice. Kamau Neighbors drove in a run with his RBI single in the bottom of the inning, with Eddie King, Jr. adding another in the seventh on a sac fly to put Louisville’s lead at 6-3.
The top of the ninth saw Oregon State start it off with Aiva Arquette’s lead-off home run off Wyatt Danilowicz’s first pitch, cutting the lead to 6-4. After a single from Gavin Turley and a Wilson Weber walk put runners on first and second base, Tucker Biven came in to try and salvage the inning. A fielding error from Alex Alicea allowed Tyce Peterson to reach base, and also allowed two runners to score to tie the game at 6-6. Despite facing runners on second and third with no outs, Biven eventually retired the final three Oregon State batters to close the inning.
Louisville started its ninth inning with a walk from Alex Alicea, then Lucas Moore reached base on a catcher’s interference call during an 0-2 pitch. Matt Klein loaded the bases afterwards, with his bunt resulting in a fielding error from Oregon State’s Kellan Oakes. Though Jake Munroe struck out on Louisville’s first opportunity to walk it off, it would be Eddie King, Jr. delivering it, as his sac fly allowed Alicea to score the winning run.
King once again provided late game heroics for Louisville, leading the way with his 2-for-3 afternoon along with a double and three RBIs. Jake Munroe (2-for-5, HR, two RBIs) and Zion Rose (1-for-3, RBI) both had home runs, with Munroe joining King as the only Louisville batters with multi-hit games.
Oregon State was led at the plate by Aiva Arquette (2-for-5, HR, RBI), whose solo homer in the ninth inning started the rally that saw the Beavers tie the game at 6-6. Gavin Turley (2-for-5) also had a multi-hit game, with Jacob Krieg (1-for-4, HR, two RBIs) also hitting a home run.
Next up, Louisville will play #13 seed Coastal Carolina on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET, airing on ESPN and 93.9 The Ville. The Cardinals will need to beat the Chanticleers on Wednesday and Thursday to advance to the finals.
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Video Credit: Inside Louisville Baseball on YouTube
