Nate Stern had a scoreless first inning, working around an error from third baseman Jack Bell.
TCU got the scoring started in the first inning. Designated hitter Sawyer Strosnider walked with one out, then would get over to third on a double from first baseman Cole Cramer. Right fielder Noah Franco would bring him home on a RBI groundout to the second baseman.
Stern would exit in the third inning as he would load the bases with one out. Manager Kirk Saarloos would ask left-hander Gianluca Shinn to get out of the jam.
Shinn started by getting shortstop Mason White to pop out to Jack Bell in foul territory. That was a huge out, as White has gone six for seven with three home runs and seven RBIs over Arizona’s two tournament games.
He would get catcher Adonys Guzman to strike out to strand the bases loaded and end the inning. He was fired up as he jogged off the field, and his teammates matched his energy as they streamed out of the dugout to greet him.
With Shinn getting out of the jam, Stern’s final line ended up being 2.1 shutout innings on two hits with no walks and a strikeout.
Shinn was dominant, going 2.2 innings with no runs, no hits, one walk and seven strikeouts. This was a career high for him, as his previous career high was four strikeouts in a game when he was at the University of Washington.
Braeden Sloan would come into the game in the sixth inning and would have to work out of trouble quickly. White would reach on a fielding error by second baseman Colton Griffin. Then Sloan would hit Guzman with a pitch to put runners on first and second with no outs.
A sacrifice bunt would move both runners into scoring position with only one out. Sloan buckled down and got second baseman Garen Caulfield to fly out to shallow center field, and the runner couldn’t tag up from third.
He capped off the inning by getting left fielder Andrew Cain to strike out swinging.
In the seventh inning, TCU almost added some insurance runs. With a man on first, shortstop Anthony Silva sent a screaming line drive toward the left field wall. It had RBI double all over it, but Cain had other plans, making a nice leaping catch up against the wall.
In the eighth inning, Sloan would have to deal with the same situation he faced in the sixth. Runners on second and third with one out, Sloan would answer the call and come up clutch again.
He got third baseman Maddox Mihalakis to strike out and then got Caulfield to ground out to Silva. Sloan was fired up on the field and celebrated with Silva before the pair entered the dugout to be greeted by their energized teammates.
However, Sloan could not escape damage all night as Cain homered to open up the ninth and tie up the game at one.
The game went into extra innings when the Horned Frogs could not score in the bottom of the ninth.
Sloan was tagged for another run in the tenth inning, as Mihalakis singled with runners on the corners to give Arizona its first lead. Sloan was pulled after that. His final line was 4.1 innings with four hits, two runs, two walks, and four strikeouts.
Right-hander Cohen Feser would get the final two outs of the tenth without letting up more damage.
Silva would single with one out in the tenth inning. He would advance to second on a groundout by Isaac Cadena. Sam Myers would come in to pinch hit for Brody Green as the last hope for the Horned Frogs. He would strike out swinging to end the game.
Kirk Saarloos gave his thoughts on his team being a host for the regionals. “We put ourselves in a position to host, there’s no doubt about it. 22 wins in the quad 1 and 2, you stack that up against anyone in the country and we’re a deserving host.”
TCU awaits a selection show on May 26, as 16 teams that get to host a regional will be announced.
