LUBBOCK, Texas — Remember how a fortuitously timed rain delay helped a cursed baseball team overcome a blown lead to win a monumental postseason game last fall?
A similar (natural) phenomenon aided the Arizona Wildcats on Saturday in the NCAA Tournament’s Lubbock Regional. All that was missing was Jason Heyward’s motivational speech.
Facing elimination, No. 2 seed Arizona took a late four-run lead over No. 4 seed Delaware — and let it slip away. UA coach Jay Johnson said he “did not like the vibe” surrounding his team at that point.
Then the heavens opened up. A delay of more than two hours ensued. The Wildcats rediscovered their mojo.
Alfonso Rivas hit an opposite-field solo home run in the 12th inning to give Arizona a 6-5 victory over Delaware. The win set up a rematch Sunday with Sam Houston State, which defeated Arizona on Friday before losing to host Texas Tech later Saturday. It will be the second of what the Wildcats hope is four straight elimination games.
“Our theme of the day was, let’s get to the doubleheader (Sunday),” Johnson said. “We’re going to go all in to make tomorrow the best day that this group has shared together. The result might be positive; it might not be. But that’s our goal.”
Arizona (38-20) made a habit of overcoming delays and winning elimination games during its run to the College World Series finals last year. Several players are back from that team, and they knew what to expect Saturday. Their mantra: Play without fear.
“That’s what I love about them,” Johnson said. “It’s about competing. It’s about something that’s bigger than baseball at this point — the brotherhood that they have together.
“There were a few points in that game where it got wobbly for them. When we got to the delay, we just said there’s no way that we’re going to hold anything back or have any excuse about this.”
The break — which came at the end of the 10th inning and lasted 2 hours 18 minutes — turned out to be a break for Arizona. The players hung out together in the batting cages. The stress they had been feeling melted away.
“It gave us a little reset button right there,” Rivas said. “We came out ready to play.”
After a scoreless 11th, Rivas came to bat with two outs in the top of the 12th. Blue Hens reliever Burk FitzPatrick left a pitch over the middle, and Rivas lifted it over the left-field wall. It was the sophomore’s seventh home run of the season and by far the most important one.
“I could tell he was feeling confident just by the way he was walking up to the plate,” said on-deck hitter Cesar Salazar, who had three singles and three RBIs.
“I was just trying to put a good swing on it and hit the ball hard somewhere on the field,” Rivas said. “And it went over the fence.”
Junior right-hander Juan Aguilera allowed a single and a walk in the bottom of the 12th but struck out Diaz Nardo looking to end the game. Aguilera pitched two scoreless innings to earn his first career victory.
Before the delay, Johnson sensed that the Wildcats’ confidence had been shaken. It was perfectly understandable: With two outs in the bottom of the eighth, Arizona held a 5-1 lead and Delaware had no one on base.
But starter Cameron Ming (7º innings, four hits, three earned runs) allowed three successive baserunners — two walks sandwiching a double — to load the bases. Michael Flynn entered in relief and gave up a two-RBI single to Jeremy Ake. Ake tried to stretch the hit into a double, but left fielder Ryan Haug threw him out at second.
Flynn allowed a single to Doug Trimble to lead off the bottom of the ninth. After retiring the next two batters, Flynn hit Brian Mayer. Johnson lifted Flynn for Tylor Megill, who surrendered an infield single to Kevin Mohollen. Jordan Glover followed with a two-RBI single up the middle that tied the score at 5-5. Megill got the last out to send the game into extra innings.
“They got kicked in the teeth,” Johnson said. “We’re two outs, nobody on base in the eighth, with Cameron Ming throwing a spectacular game for us.
“Then we’re one strike away. Tylor Megill makes some nice pitches. One’s an infield hit, and then one squirts through the infield.
“It was a little bit of a wind-out-of-your-sails type deal. But they regrouped. That’s what makes them fun to coach — their ability to withstand adversity and respond in a championship manner.”
Whether Arizona can do it three more times remains to be seen. The extra-inning game taxed the Wildcats’ pitching staff. If they get past Sam Houston State, a rested Texas Tech team will be waiting for them.
“We have a tremendous challenge on our hands,” Johnson said.
