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College  | Story | 6/28/2017

Chomp! Gators win 1st title

Nick Herfordt
Photo: Courtney Culbreath

CWS Video Recaps: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5 | Day 6 | Day 7 | Day 8
CWS Finals: Gators bite first | 2017 College World Series Preview

OMAHA, Neb. – “It's probably Tyler," Florida Head Coach Kevin O'Sullivan replied when asked who he had picked to start Tuesday’s potential championship deciding game at the 2017 College World Series Finals, an eventual 6-1 win by his Gators over LSU.

His answer had a degree of trepidation as the pick wasn’t an obvious choice. The freshman Tyler Dyson had only a mixed bag of success during Florida’s regular season out of the bullpen, posting a 4.74 ERA in 22 2/3 innings. Only one of his appearances was a start, an inauspicious outing against Florida State in which he only lasted 1 2/3 innings, allowing three runs with a walk and a hit by pitch.

Nevertheless, Dyson had blossomed during the postseason. Against Wake Forest in the Super Regionals he threw seven innings over two games, only allowing two hits to the Demon Deacons and not a single run despite Wake having led the NCAA in home runs and being fifth nationally in slugging percentage. He had also shut down Louisville over 1 1/3 innings earlier in the CWS.

Dyson had become one of Florida's most-reliable arms, but he wasn’t yet one of the most dependable, at least not yet. However after Tuesday’s game he wasn’t just reliable, he would become downright legendary.

After Dyson got through the Tiger first with little threat, the same result wasn’t to be for LSU’s all-time win leader, Jared Poche’.

Deacon Liput led off the game for Florida with a fortuitous at-bat. He knocked the ball down the first base line for what looked like a routine out, but Nick Coomes was unable to wrangle an odd hop. Dalton Guthrie immediately followed with a single which moved Liput to third, putting Gators on the corners without a single out. J.J. Schwarz, the third batter of the inning, came through with a single to right center field to plate Deacon Liput and give Florida the first run of the game. 

The early damage was almost more severe, but Greg Deichmann and Antoine Duplantis were able to snag a pair of difficult outs in the outfield to let Poche’ off the hook early.

In the second it looked like Poche’ was going to be able to find his groove after eliminating the first two batters, but Nick Horvath, whose defense saved the game the night before, punched a ball to left. Horvath was nearly picked off, but Coomes’ first base defense was snakebitten once again. He lost the ball as he transferred it from his leather, allowing Horvath to dash safely to second rather than see the inning come to an end.

Liput, the leadoff hitter, was brought to the plate once again and he knocked a pitch up the middle, an unmenacing but serendipitous dribbler to center, which scored Horvath. Fortunately for the LSU faithful the Tigers were able to put the kibosh on any additional Gator runs, but spotting Florida a 2-0 lead was definitely not in the gameplan for LSU.

For the next four innings Dyson and Poche’ pitched superlatively, unveiling the kind of performances which would be anticipated in a matchup of the final two teams standing. Neither team would be able to score again until a memorable seventh inning.

LSU started the seventh with a “swingle” (swinging single) by speedy center fielder Zach Watson. It was only the third hit allowed by Dyson, but it was enough to pull him from the game. Rubber-armed closer Michael Byrne was beckoned from the bullpen with the hopes of closing the game despite having earned a six-out save the previous night. If he was going to secure the title for the Gators it would require him making the final nine outs.

The Tiger’s Josh Smith was at the plate and rudely welcomed Byrne to the game with a double to right field. He skewered the pitch which sinked and dodged the glove of the outstretched diving outfielder. His hit scored Watson to cut the lead in half and Smith advanced to second to keep the Tigers with a man in scoring position. The next batter, Jake Slaughter, made multiple attempts to lay down a sacrifice bunt to move Smith to third but was unsuccessful. Instead he ultimately knocked the ball into left field, which gave LSU runners on the corners with no outs.

Then came “the play,” an unbelievable, inconceivable turn of events which helped determine the ultimate outcome of the game.

Michael Papierski hit a grounder to second which was flawlessly fielded and tossed to the shortstop Guthrie. Guthrie dodged the hard-sliding Slaughter and was able to pull off a whizz-bang 4-6-3 double-play, which despite recording a pair of needed outs, also seemingly scored Watson from third. However Slaughter’s slide was astutely ruled runner interference by second base umpire Steve Mattingly.

Slaughter’s outstretched foot had struck shortstop Guthrie’s knee nullifying the tying run. Watson was called back to third base from the dugout by virtue of the force-play slide rule. A contingent of LSU fans from the bleachers peppered the outfield with debris. However had they had the virtue of replay or keen position of the umpire Mattingly, they'd know their fury was unwarranted.

The next batter lined out to Horvath in center field to skewer and extinguish the Tigers’ rally.

After an uneventful bottom half of the inning by Florida the Tigers threatened once again to start the eigth. A floating looper to the right side by Kramer Robertson avoided a lunging Liput to put Robertson on first. An extremely wild pitch that would make Ricky Vaughn envious moved Robertson to second. Cole Freeman’s perfect surprise bunt put runners on the corners without an out. Antoine Duplantis battled Bryne but couldn't make contact and stuck out swinging for the first out.

Coach Kevin O’Sullivan pushed all his chip in and removed his closer in exchange for Jackson Kowar to stop the Tigers rally. The move to put in Kowar was a surprise on multiple levels: he hadn’t came in relief all season, but more importantly, it would leave the cupboard would be bare as he had been slated to start a potential winner-take-all game on Wednesday. Regardless, Kowar was ready for the assignment.

“I had talked to Sully early in the game and I knew there was a chance I would come in,” Kowar stated after the game, “I was feeling really fresh the past couple of weeks. I knew I could get a couple of outs and start tomorrow if necessary.”

Kowar got Deichmann to rap a ball in the direction of first base which was cleanly fielded by J.J. Schwarz, who fired to home (a chance at a double-play had been eliminated as Freeman had erupted from first with the pitch). Schwarz’s throw easily beat Roberston to the plate but backstop Mike Rivera wasn’t in a position where he could easily apply the tag. Regardless, Rivera swept left and eliminated the charging Roberston’s outstretch hand by inches to make the out at the plate.

A liner to center by Watson ended the inning.

The heads-up play by Schwarz was robustly touted after the game, especially by Kowar, who had just came in to pitch.

“To throw on the money right there in a situation like that is awesome,” rebaked Kowar, “He's a catcher by trade. That's not even his position. Our defense has done that all year for us. So it's nothing new for our guys behind us. They've really given our pitching staff the most confidence in the world.”

In the bottom of the eighth it was apparent that fortune would smile upon Florida.

Jonathan India led off the inning with a double which was followed by a walk to put two aboard. Rivera placed a perfect sacrifice bunt to move both runners 90 feet further and into scoring position. Pinch hitter Christian Hicks came to the plate but was immediately intentionally walked to face the light hitting Horvath and set up a potential double play. Instead Horvath was nipped by a pitch to push across another run.

The floodgates opened after a single by Liput plated another pair. The score was now 5-1 and the writing was on the wall as LSU fans began to leave the stadium en masse. Yet another single filled the bases once again and a deep fly ball to center field brought in a fourth insurance run. It would be more than enough to give the Gators the cushion they needed to capture the title.

After the final out was made, Coach O’Connor deflected personal praise and instead lavished accolades on his team and his coaches.

“You never know how you're going to feel when you get the last out in the College World Series, and I'm still kind of numb,” O’Sullivan said. “But (I’m) just overwhelmed with emotions for our players. They're the ones that put in all the hard work and have to juggle the classroom and all that type of things.

“And our staff, Craig (Bell), Brad (Weitzel), we've been together for 10 years, and we've been working so hard to get to this point. And it's all about the players to my right and the players on the bus, and I'm just really happy for them. I really am… I'm just really happy for these guys here because they deserve it and they're the ones who go out there and play. And we'll let it sink in and we'll enjoy this for a little bit.”

The University of Florida had previously earned 38 national titles in school history, but their win on Tuesday in Omaha earned them their first ever national baseball championship after 103 seasons.

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