Georgia is known for its offense. And, true to form, the Bulldogs clubbed a home run in the first inning of their win over Texas, a two-run shot from Rylan Lujo.
But the Dawgs' pitching proved the biggest story of Day 2 in Omaha. Specifically, it was Georgia pitcher Joey Volchko.
Volchko, the Bulldogs' ace, turned in the best performance of his career on college baseball's biggest stage. Prior to Saturday, Volchko had never made it through the seventh inning. Nor had he topped 10 strikeouts, which he'd reached twice this season.
On Saturday against Texas, Volchko went the distance and fanned 15, pacing Georgia to a 7-1 win over the Longhorns. Most importantly, Georgia didn't have to use any other pitchers.
As with West Virginia and Ian Korn on Friday, saving the bullpen often saves a team in Omaha. This is a long tournament, and every game that a team doesn't burn an arm makes a difference.
Volchko hit all of his spots on Saturday, and Georgia now looks like an even bigger threat to win the national title than it did before arriving in Omaha.
Texas Throws It Away
Maybe it wouldn't have mattered if Texas played perfect baseball. Volchko was so dominant that there might have been nothing the Longhorns could do. But Texas certainly didn't help its cause with a poor first inning in the field.
Texas hurler Drew Volantis struck out two hitters in the first inning, but neither resulted in an out. After Lujo's home run, Volantis responded by striking out Michael O'Shaugnessy, only to have catcher Carson Tinney fail to complete the throw to first on the dropped third strike. Had that not happened, Ryan Wynn's fly ball two hitters later would have ended the inning.
Instead, Volantis hit the next batter and threw a wild pitch on strike three to Kolby Branch, allowing O'Shaugnessy to score. Tinney then made another throwing error, bringing home Georgia's fourth run of the inning.
The Longhorns settled down from there, but the damage was done. Texas never gave itself a chance, allowing Volchko to pitch with confidence and ease to a victory.
Rager Masters The Moment
As the only unseeded team in the SEC half of the bracket, Oklahoma had the toughest assignment for its pitching staff. Whoever the Sooners drew on Monday, they'd face a tall task. That made a strong start Saturday vital, and Cord Rager delivered.
Rager shut down the Tide through 7 innings, and LJ Mercurius closed things out. Rager began the year as the team's No. 3 starter but has steadily improved into one of the Sooners' best arms. He did it again on Saturday, striking out eight and walking nobody.
Once Oklahoma jumped on Alabama, the Sooners had the advantage of anticipating their next opponent. Rager and Mercurius are both strikeout pitchers who allow the ball to travel through the air more often than not. Against Georgia's powerful offense, that's dangerous. That meant Mercurius probably wasn't going to go on Monday anyway, allowing Skip Johnson to deploy him in relief against the Tide.
Oklahoma will likely turn to Cameron Johnson next, who spent most of the year as the Sooners' No. 2. Unlike Rager and Mercurius, Johnson tends to keep the ball lower. He allowed only four home runs all year, and Oklahoma needs him to keep the ball in the park against Georgia.
Fay Keeps Alabama Afloat
There aren't a lot of positives to take from a 9-0 blowout. But Alabama can hold onto this one: Tyler Fay made sure the Crimson Tide wouldn't absorb two losses on their first day.
Fay gutted through six innings, leaving with his team down 5-0. That's not a great line, but the important thing for Alabama was how many innings he consumed. The Tide didn't have to send anyone else out for longer than 33 pitches. With the extra day of rest, Alabama can recover from that.
Saturday wasn't the Crimson Tide's day. But if the loss to Oklahoma had turned into a bullpen parade, beating Texas in the elimination round would have been nearly impossible. Instead, Alabama still has a fighting chance because Fay stayed in the game.
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