Stanford Scores Three In The Ninth To Swipe Pac-12 Title From Huskies

Saturday, May 26

Seattle, WA

3:00 PM

University of Washington

30-23, 0

Stanford

44-10, 0

Stanford

Washington

Stanford Scores Three In The Ninth To Swipe Pac-12 Title From Huskies

May 26, 2018 | Baseball

Box Score

By: Brian Tom

SEATTLE – Will Matthiessen hit a two-run homer in the ninth to tie the game and Nico Hoerner hit a bases-loaded infield single to push the winning run across the plate as No. 3 Stanford rallied from a 5-3 ninth-inning deficit to win, 6-5, and claim sole possession of the Pac-12 Conference Baseball crown.

The Huskies (30-23, 20-10 Pac-12) were three outs away from earning a share of their first Pac-12 title since 1998, but instead the resilient Cardinal (44-10, 22-8) had one last trick up their sleeve to swipe the title out from under the Huskies' noses.

Joe DeMers, who was trying to finish off his fourth complete game of the year, walked Kyle Stowers to lead off the ninth and Matthiessen followed with his game-tying home run to left-center field. The homer came on DeMers' 112^th pitch of the game and sent him to the bench with a no decision, despite pitching his heart out over eight innings.

Josh Burgmann replaced DeMers and got the first out before allowing the next two Cardinal batters to reach on a walk and a single. Stevie Emanuels replaced Burgmann (1-2) and allowed a single to load the bases before he got Tim Tawa to tap back to the mound for a fielder's choice at home for the second out. That brought up Stanford's All-America candidate, Hoerner, and the shortstop came through with a slow roller to third base that he beat out for a RBI infield single.

Stanford was poised to put the game away for good when Andrew Daschbach rocketed a drive to left-center field but, but Husky freshman Braiden Ward tracked the ball down and made a leaping grab against the wall to keep the game within reach at 6-5. It was one of two spectacular defensive plays made by Ward to keep the Cardinal off the board.

Stanford closer Jack Ward (3-0), who entered the game in the eighth inning, struck out the first two Huskies in the ninth before allowing a double to Nick Kahle, but he got KJ Brady swinging to end the game and preserve the win for his team.

"It's tough to say after you lose a game like that with what's on the line, but that was a great college baseball game, and I will say this, that's what college baseball is all about," Husky Coach Lindsay Meggs said. "One-run game, last of the ninth, two outs, tying run on second, so, as far as what we expected, that's kind of how we figured it would be. A one-run game, one way or the other. We just didn't finish, and sometimes that happens."

The loss dampened an incredible sendoff for the Huskies' five seniors, especially Levi Jordan who homered, doubled and drove in three runs in his last game at Husky Ballpark. But Meggs wanted his seniors and entire team that he shouldered the blame for how the game unfolded.

"My heart breaks for him, and all the guys that are seniors because they've given us so much," Meggs reflected. "And I suppose I could have managed the ninth differently. As I told them, 'Those are my decisions, and I'm the one who pulls the trigger on those things,' but I don't want those guys to look back and feel like this was a failed weekend because it wasn't. We did what we had to do and we just didn't get it finished the way we would have liked."

Once again, the Huskies looked like the team to beat out of the gate. For the third time in the series, Washington struck early against Stanford's starter, this time hanging a two-spot on the board against Kris Bubic in the first inning.

With two outs, Kahle walked and Joe Wainhouse reached on an infield single, setting the table for Jordan. He celebrated his last game at Husky Ballpark by smacking a double into the left-center gap that scored both runners.

The Cardinal answered back quickly in the second to tie the game back up on a two-run home run by Brandon Wulff. Matthiessen drew a walk off of DeMers and Wulff followed by clearing the fence in left-center field for his fourth homer of the year.

Both pitchers settled down until the Huskies scored in the fifth and sixth innings to re-take the lead. UW got an unearned run in the fifth when Ward motored home all the way from first on a seeing-eye single through the left-side of the infield by Kahle. Ward was going to be held up at third base, but when Stowers dropped the ball in left field, Ward was able to scamper home to give UW a 3-2 lead.

An inning later, Jordan led off the sixth with a bomb over the left-field fence for his second home run of the series, and 10^th of his career. The blast chased Bubic from the game, trailing 4-2.

Stanford would get a run back in the seventh on a lead-off home run by Stowers to right center that cut the Huskies' lead to 4-3, but the Huskies tacked on an eighth-inning, would-be, insurance run.

AJ Graffanino doubled into the gap scoring pinch runner Brady from first to give the Huskies a 5-3. Graffanino ended up being stranded at third with less than two outs, which proved to be huge after the Cardinal's late rally.

Despite the loss, the Huskies still earned a series victory over the nation's No. 3 team and have won five-straight Pac-12 series to end the year. They will now await their NCAA fate, which will be announced at 9:00 a.m. PT on ESPNU.

"Right now, it's really raw for those guys," said Meggs. "We were in the locker room and I explained to them that their challenge now is to get it out of their systems before Monday. They've got all day tomorrow to heal up, spend some time together, and flush this thing, because I can't imagine any scenario where we wouldn't be moving on."