OMAHA, Neb. — Arizona won for the fifth time in a row when facing elimination, defeating Oklahoma State 9-3 in the College World Series on Friday.
Winning a sixth straight elimination game will be the Wildcats’ most daunting challenge yet.
Arizona lost ace pitcher Nathan Bannister in the third inning because of an undisclosed injury. Bannister’s premature exit forced UA coach Jay Johnson to tax his bullpen, using Kevin Ginkel and Cameron Ming to get through the rest of the game. That might have been the combination of choice for Saturday’s bracket-deciding game against the Cowboys. The winner will advance to the CWS finals, a best-of-three series scheduled to start Monday.