OMAHA, Neb. — This wasn’t how any of them expected this run to end.
The Arizona Wildcats came to the College World Series with bold ambitions. They had the best offense in the field. They hadn’t lost consecutive games since mid-April. They believed they could compete with anyone, and they had the record to prove it.
Then they ran into their nemesis.
Stanford was one of only two teams to defeat Arizona in a series this season. On Monday, the Cardinal sent the Wildcats home for the summer.
Stanford scored seven runs in the third inning en route to a 14-5 victory over Arizona at TD Ameritrade Park that eliminated the Wildcats from the CWS. It was the first time in their past three trips to Omaha that the Cats failed to reach the CWS finals. Arizona won it all in 2012 and was the runner-up in ’16, Jay Johnson’s first season as head coach.
“Tough day today, obviously,” Johnson said. “Tip your hat to Stanford. They were ready to play. They hit everything.
“Twenty-four hours or 36 hours of disappointment here is not going to change the accomplishments of our team. I’m very proud of them. First outright conference championship team at the University of Arizona in 29 years. Forty-five wins. National seed. Hosted a regional, a Super Regional, champions at both of those.
“(We) lost to two really good opponents here. I was proud of the way we competed.”
The Wildcats finish the 2021 season with a 45-18 record. They fell into the losers’ bracket with a 7-6, 12-inning loss to Vanderbilt on Saturday night.
Stanford (39-16) will face the winner of the North Carolina State-Vandy game, which was scheduled for later Monday.
Stanford players celebrate as Tommy Troy, obscured behind Drew Bowser (2), returns to the dugout after hitting a two-run homer during Stanford's seven-run third inning.
After the final pitch at 3:38 p.m. local time, about half the Wildcats lingered in the third-base dugout, hanging over the railing and watching the Cardinal celebrate. Johnson would gather them for a brief conversation; he’d have more to say at the team hotel later Monday.
Players then began exchanging hugs. Some of them felt like goodbyes.
Left-handers Riley Cooper and Ian Churchill strolled toward the bullpen with their arms around each other’s shoulders. Daniel Susac, Garrett Irvin and Quinn Flanagan signed autographs.
Several players dabbed tears with their sleeves.
“Great baseball team, made up of great competitors and great character,” Johnson said. “This is a tough group to say goodbye to. We’ll have some of them back, but collectively, pretty special.”
For the second straight outing, UA left-hander Garrett Irvin couldn’t recapture the form he showed in shutting out UC Santa Barbara in the Tucson Regional. Irvin, who had defeated Stanford on May 8, lasted only 2 1/3 innings. He allowed seven hits and was charged with five earned runs.
In his past two outings, including a start against Ole Miss in the Super Regionals, Irvin yielded 14 hits and 12 earned runs in 3 2/3 innings.
“They had a really good plan against him,” Johnson said. “He made some mistakes. And those are big, strong, physical guys.”
Arizona trailed 3-0 with one out and two runners on base when Irvin exited in the top of the third. The Wildcats brought one of their most reliable arms, right-hander Chandler Murphy, in from the bullpen. Murphy, who had been used as a starter and in relief, entered Monday with a 3.63 ERA.
After a wild pitch advanced the runners to second and third, Murphy yielded a two-RBI single to Drew Bowser — after Bowser fouled off four consecutive pitches.
Murphy fell behind 2-0 against the next batter, Tommy Troy. Troy clubbed the next pitch into the bleachers for a two-run homer to give Stanford a 7-0 advantage.
Arizona pitchers Riley Cooper (38) and Ian Churchill (34) walk off the field following Monday's loss to Stanford.
Murphy surrendered singles to three of the first four batters he faced in the fourth. One scored to make it 8-0. Quinn Flanagan came in to face Christian Robinson, who roped a double to right-center, scoring two more runs. Both were charged to Murphy. His final ledger: one inning, five hits, five earned runs.
“I just think we missed over the plate too much,” Johnson said. “It was a lot of the same with Garrett. Those guys are quality pitchers and have been good for us. They’re two of the biggest reasons we’re in Omaha right now.”
Arizona’s offense again couldn’t get much going against Stanford right-hander Alex Williams, who had defeated the Wildcats on May 9. He allowed just three hits in six scoreless innings that afternoon.
Williams’ fastball rarely exceeded 90 mph, but its cutting action limited hard contact against Arizona’s left-handed batters. Williams entered Monday having allowed only 13 hits in 27 1/3 innings against lefties compared to 21 hits in 22 2/3 against righties. All four hits he allowed Monday were against right-handed batters.
“He has good movement on his fastball, where you feel like it’s going to be on your barrel and then it moves off,” Johnson said. “Has a really plus change-up. ... If you try to do too much, that’s where he’s going to beat you.
“We did start to put together some at-bats against him. Five runs in six innings. But at one time they had more hits than outs. You’re not going to win in Omaha when that’s the case.”
By the time the Cats finally got to Williams in the fourth, they were trailing 10-0. Susac’s double to right-center scored Tony Bullard and Branden Boissiere, both of whom had walked.
Arizona scored three more runs in the sixth, knocking Williams out of the game and halving its deficit. The inning featured another double by Susac and an RBI triple by Kobe Kato.
But Stanford responded with four runs in the seventh, including a three-run homer by Brock Jones off reliever Dawson Netz. That made it 14-5 — a nine-run deficit with nine outs to go that proved unsurmountable.
“We made it to the College World Series,” UA outfielder Donta’ Williams said. “That’s everybody’s dream growing up. This team was special. This team was very special. It’s just hard.”
