Texas one win away from title series

OMAHA, Neb. – David Maroul’s three-run double highlighted Texas’ five-run first inning and Seth Johnston and Dooley Prince had four hits apiece to lead the Longhorns to a 9-3 victory over Georgia in the College World Series on Sunday night.

The top-seeded Longhorns earned the inside track to a spot in the best-of-3 championship series. They will go to the finals next weekend if they beat the winner of Tuesday’s Georgia-Arizona game.

In the other game, Arizona beat Arkansas 7-2.

Texas (57-13), which beat Arkansas 13-2 in the CWS’ first round, has outscored its opponents by a combined 71-21 in seven NCAA tournament games.

The Longhorns had their first three batters reach against starter Sean Ruthven, who needed 55 pitches in the opening inning. Johnston and Carson Kainer drove in runs before Maroul’s bases-loaded double into the left-field corner for a 5-0 lead.

Ruthven (7-2) gave up an RBI double to Curtis Thigpen in the fourth and left in favor of Mitchell Boggs to start the fifth.

Sam LeCure, making his school-record 22nd straight start this season, allowed three hits and one run in four innings. J. Brent Cox (6-1) got the win in relief after giving up two runs on four hits in three innings.

Huston Street pitched one-hit relief over the last two innings.

Georgia (44-22) scored once in the first on Josh Morris’ sacrifice fly and twice in the fifth on a Marshall Szabo single and a Josh Morris groundout.

In the early game, Arizona’s Jordan Brown looked more like the No. 3 batter he used to be rather than the No. 8 batter he was.

The demoted Brown hit two of his team’s four home runs as the Wildcats eliminated Arkansas.

Arizona (36-26-1) moves to a Tuesday game against Georgia. Arkansas ended its season 45-24.

John Meloan (10-0) and Mark Melancon combined to hold Arkansas to five hits.