Golden Eagles eliminated from CWS with 6-1 loss

Oral Roberts’ magical 2023 baseball season came to a close Tuesday with a 6-1 loss to the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs in an elimination game at the 2023 Men’s College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.

The Golden Eagles became the third No. 4 seed to reach the College World Series, joining national champion Fresno State in 2008 and Stony Brook in 2012, by winning both the Stillwater Regional and Eugene Super Regional.

Oral Roberts finishes the 2023 campaign with a 52-14 record with the 52 wins being a program record.

Oral Roberts began its second CWS appearance and first since 1978 – last Friday with a thrilling 6-5, come-from-behind, win over TCU in the opening contest of the annual tournament.

The opening-round win saw the Golden Eagles overcome a 3-run deficit in the top of the ninth, scoring four runs in the frame with the final three coming on Blaze Brothers’ 3-run home run off TCU closer Luke Savage.

The Golden Eagles met No. 2 seed Florida in the winner’s bracket quarterfinals this past Sunday and almost pulled off their second-straight comeback win at the CWS, falling by a 5-4 margin.

The loss to Florida put Oral Roberts into an elimination game Tuesday against TCU and a rematch of last Friday’s opening-round battle.

In last Friday’s opening-round win over the Horned Frogs, TCU broke a scoreless tie with a run in the bottom of the fourth on a solo home run by Cole Fontenelle.

After a scoreless fifth, Oral Roberts took over the lead, 2-1, with two outs in the top of the sixth on a 2-run home run to right by Mac McCroskey.

TCU plated a run in the bottom of the sixth to deadlock the score at 2-2, then regained the lead, 5-2, with three runs in the bottom of the eighth.

Oral Roberts began the top of the ninth with three-straight singles with the third coming on an RBI single by designated hitter Drew Stahl. After catcher Jacob Godman was retired for the first out of the frame, Brothers drove an 0-1 pitch over the left-field wall for a go-ahead 3-run home run, putting the Golden Eagles on top by a 6-5 margin.

TCU threatened in the bottom of the ninth with one out, putting the winning run on base with a one-out walk. Oral Roberts closer Cade Denton kept the runners at first and second by retiring the next two hitters on a strikeout and lineout to left to give Oral Roberts the thrilling 6-5 victory.

In Sunday’s winner’s bracket showdown with the No. 2 seeded Gators, Florida opened the scoring with two runs in the top of the second on a 2-run home run by Ty Evans.

Oral Roberts cut the deficit in half, 2-1, with a run in the bottom of the second on an RBI single by Justin Quinn.

A leadoff solo home run by Josh Rivera and a 2-run home run by Luke Heyman in the top of the fourth extended Florida’s lead to 5-1 after three and one-half innings.

The score remained at 5-1 until the bottom of the seventh when Matt Hogan’s 2-run home run cut the Florida lead to two, 5-3.

After a scoreless eighth and top of ninth, the Golden Eagles made it a 5-4 contest with an RBI fielder’s choice groundout by Stahl in the bottom of the ninth. The Oral Roberts’ rally attempt ended when Godman flew out to the center fielder for the final out of the inning, putting the Golden Eagles on the losing end of a 5-4 decision and their first loss of the 2023 CWS.

In Tuesday’s elimination game, TCU opened the scoring in the top of the second on a bases-loaded walk. The second run for the Horned Frogs came in the top of the fourth when relief pitcher Joshua Caravalho was called for a balk with runners at second and third.

The deficit for Oral Roberts inflated to 6-0 in the top of the fifth when TCU plated four runs in the frame.

The lone run for the Golden Eagles on Tuesday came on a 2-out RBI single by Jonah Cox in the bottom of the fifth.

Oral Roberts was unable to produce any runs in the final four innings of regulation to suffer the season-ending 6-1 defeat.

Brooks Fowler, the grandson of Dewar coach Joe Fowler, started on the mound for Oral Roberts on Tuesday and was saddled with the pitching loss, allowing one earned run on one hit with three walks and four strikeouts in three innings of work.