Rice rallies in eighth to pull past Louisville

North Carolina used a six-run sixth inning to beat Mississippi State.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

OMAHA, Neb. — Danny Lehmann doubled in the go-ahead run in Rice’s six-run eighth inning, and the team that set a College World Series record for offensive futility last year rallied to beat Louisville 15-10 Friday in the tournament opener.

Louisville, which had scored 77 runs in eight NCAA tournament games, broke out to leads of 5-0 and 10-4 in its first CWS appearance before Rice pitchers Scott Lonergan and Bobby Bramhall combined to hold the Cardinals scoreless the last four innings.

The Owls (55-12), the No. 2 national seed, will play Sunday against North Carolina. The Cardinals (46-23) will face Mississippi State.

Rice, with 14 players taken in last week’s draft and wins in 35 of 37 games, arrived in Omaha with some heavy baggage after failing to score in its last 23 innings at last year’s CWS. That streak ended at 252⁄3 innings when Lehmann singled in Rice’s four-run third inning.

Rice trailed 5-0 and 10-4 before a three-run fifth inning and home runs by Joe Savery in the sixth and Aaron Luna in the seventh pulled the Owls to 10-9.

Bramhall (7-2) kept it a one-run game in the eighth after he intentionally walked Chris Dominguez to load the bases with one out. Bramhall struck out Pete Rodriguez after running the count full, then got Derrick Alfonso to fly out to end the threat.

Louisville called on closer Trystan Magnuson (3-3) in the bottom half, and the Owls broke open the game. Chad Lembeck singled leading off and Tyler Henley beat out Dominguez’s throw from third for a bunt single before Joe Savery’s liner into left tied it at 10.

Lehmann’s double put Rice up 11-10, and the Owls scored four more times before Bramhall shut down the Cardinals in the ninth.

Logan Johnson homered twice and Dominguez once for the Cardinals.

The teams combined for 34 hits.

North Carolina 8, Mississippi St. 5

OMAHA, Neb. — North Carolina cobbled together a six-run sixth inning to beat Mississippi State.

The Tar Heels (54-13) spotted the Bulldogs a 4-0 lead before rallying with four hits, two hit batters, a walk and an error to chalk up their fifth come-from-behind victory in six NCAA tournament games.

The Tar Heels, who entered the sixth down 4-2, sent 11 batters to the plate against MSU starter Justin Pigott (7-7) and two relievers. A fielding error by third baseman Russ Sneed and Benji Johnson’s RBI double tied it, then John Lalor hit Reid Fronk with a pitch with the bases loaded to force in the go-ahead run.

Tim Federoff’s sacrifice fly and Dustin Ackley’s two-run single gave Carolina a four-run lead.

Adam Warren (11-0), normally a starter, turned in the longest relief performance of his career after starter Robert Woodard got roughed up. Warren allowed three hits while holding the Bulldogs (38-21) scoreless in 41⁄3 innings.