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U of L baseball stunned in super regional – The Courier-Journal

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Jeff Greer, @jeffgreer_cj 12:11 a.m. EDT June 9, 2015

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Louisville head coach Dan McDonnell breaks down in postgame press conference after the Cards’ season-ending loss to Fullerton.

Devin Hairston stood in the batter’s box, his bat in his hand, his head staring down. Ryan Summers lay face down in front of second base.

The University of Louisville baseball team, some of its players still motionless on the dugout railing, stood in stunned silence.

Cal State Fullerton had fought back from a two-run deficit with a valiant rally in the eighth inning against U of L’s powerful bullpen. It had taken a 4-3 lead in the 11th inning with David Olmedo-Barrera’s controversial solo home run that was ruled fair by the umpires after an official review of the play.

And then Fullerton won Game 3 of the NCAA tournament super regional against Louisville with a laser of a throw by catcher Chris Hudgins, who caught U of L’s Summers trying to steal second base and move into scoring position with Hairston at bat and two outs in the last-gasp 11th.

The victory sent Fullerton to the College World Series, and it ended the season for the Cardinals, the third national seed in the 64-team field, in a dramatic, painful way.

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“There’s no shame in losing to a great program,” U of L coach Dan McDonnell said. “I made it clear to them how much fun they are to coach. If you love college baseball, that was a great game. It’s a shame someone had to lose, but tonight it was the Cardinals.”

Louisville (47-18) had set an Atlantic Coast Conference record with 25 league wins, and it had risen to No. 2 in at least one poll, the highest ranking in program history.

Along the way, left-handed, two-way phenom Brendan McKay won multiple awards, most notably a Freshman All-America nomination and ACC freshman of the year. McDonnell was named the ACC coach of the year.

And then, in one wild, gripping extra-innings affair, the season was gone.

Louisville took a 3-1 lead with persistence, scoring first off a Will Smith solo home run that tied the game at 1 in the fourth inning, then taking the lead with a McKay sacrifice fly in the sixth.

The next inning, U of L plated its third run in rare fashion, with Zach Lucas stealing second and advancing to third on a wild pitch on the same play, then scoring on a second wild pitch.

Story continues after the gallery

Cal State Fullerton celebrates after beating Louisville

A dejected UofL Baseball bench reacts to its 4-3 loss

Louisville loses to Fullerton in the Super Regional.

Cal State Fullerton Titans right fielder Dustin Vaught

Louisville's Will Smith cranks a home run to tie the

Louisville's pitching coach Roger Williams gets the

Louisville's Zach Lucas celebrates after hitting a

Louisville's Josh Rogers reacts after catching a line

In the bottom of the 6th, an errant throw to Cal State

In the bottom of the 6th, an errant throw to second

Fans line the 1st base line fence to watch Louisville's

Louisville Cardinals' Nick Solak scores the go-ahead

Kelly Fisher, right, takes a picture of his son Hayden

Fans arrive to watch Louisville's third Super Regional

Cal State Fullerton Titans Tyler Stieb flies out to

Cal State Fullerton Titans David Olmedo-Barrera jumps

Louisville Cardinals' Will Smith hits a home run in

Cal State Fullerton Titans left fielder Josh Vargas

Last Slide Next Slide

But Fullerton (39-23) never went away, even after Louisville lefty Josh Rogers pitched a masterful seven-plus innings.

Rogers gave up one run on three hits, striking out six and walking one, but he left mid-count in the eighth inning after throwing Ball 2 into the netting behind home plate.

After Hudgins flied out for the first out, a walk and three singles, including a two-RBI ground ball to left by Jerrod Bravo, tied the game for the Titans and took Rogers off the hook for the win.

That comeback set up a thrilling back-and-forth run through the ninth, 10th and 11th innings, with Louisville threatening several times to win.

Fullerton got its moment in the 11th, when Olmedo-Barrera’s always-bending line drive over the left-field wall spurred controversy that will linger around Louisville baseball for some time.

Third-base umpire Heath Jones initially ruled a home run, but McDonnell was already on the field to challenge the call before Olmedo-Barrera had rounded third base.

Smith, the Cards’ sophomore catcher, said in post-game interviews that he thought the ball was foul, and his teammates’ reaction on the field implied that they felt the same way.

Umpires in college baseball can use replay to determine if the on-field call was correct, and in Monday’s instance, the ruling stood. The on-field umpires consulted with two officials based in Atlanta, according to pool reporter Jody Demling, and found “conclusive” evidence that the ball was fair.

Louisville’s fans booed when the umpires took the headphones off and confirmed the home run, and Fullerton’s dugout flipped.

“I wouldn’t have walked out there if I didn’t think it was foul,” McDonnell said. “I’m not going to waste everyone’s time. But like I told our guys in the outfield (after the game), we’re not going to blame an umpire.”