Stanford explodes late to defeat Florida State
OMAHA, Neb. – Stanford coach Mark Marquess would have been happy to score one run in the ninth inning against Florida State.
How about 11?
“That’s one of those things that happen. You don’t know why it happens,” Marquess said after the Cardinal’s record-tying 11-run outburst broke open a tie game in a 16-5 victory in Saturday’s College World Series opener.
“Luckily, it happened for us,” he said. “We got a couple big hits and broke it open.”
Yes, they did.
Brent Milleville’s three-run homer highlighted Stanford’s biggest inning of the year and the biggest in a CWS game since Cal State Fullerton scored 11 times against LSU in the first inning in 1994. Sean Ratliff added a two-run single and Cord Phelps a two-run double.
Stanford (40-22-2) will play Monday against Georgia. The Seminoles (54-13) will try to stay alive Monday against Miami.
The Cardinal went into the ninth tied at 5 after FSU’s Jason Stidham hit a two-out, three-run homer off Drew Storen in the eighth.
With a strong wind blowing out at Rosenblatt Stadium, the day appeared perfect for another of Florida State’s big offensive days. The Seminoles came in averaging 10 runs a game for the season and 11 in the NCAA tournament.
But other than homers by Dennis Guinn and Stidham, Stanford’s four pitchers mostly held the Seminoles in check during the 4-hour, 11-minute game – the third-longest nine-inning game in CWS history.
Storen (5-3) got the win, allowing three runs and three hits in the seventh and eighth innings.
John Gast (0-1), the third of the seven pitchers FSU used, took the loss.
Toby Gerhart went 3 for 4 with a home run, and Milleville and Ratliff combined to drive in seven runs for the Cardinal. Stanford had 15 hits.
Georgia 7, Miami 4: The Bulldogs scored four runs in the ninth inning – two on Miami closer Carlos Gutierrez’s throwing error – and Georgia (42-23-1) came from behind to beat the top-seeded Hurricanes.
Gutierrez, the Minnesota Twins’ first-round draft pick, came on to start the ninth to protect Miami’s one-run lead. He couldn’t do it, and Miami (52-10) lost for the first time in 46 games in which it led after eight innings.