June 21, 2007

Anteaters oust Titans, 5-4, in record-breaking series game

BY JANICE CARR THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

OMAHA, NEB. After the winning run crossed the plate that ended the 13-inning marathon and the players had shaken hands, the two coaches approached each other. They stopped briefly then embraced.

Coaches hugging? That’s about as extraordinary as a 5-hour, 40-minute college baseball game.

But Monday’s College World Series game between UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton was as close to atypical of anything the 61-year-old tournament has seen. Records fell, runs scored, batters were hit, a runner was thrown out at the plate and many pitches — 417 of them — were tossed. So was one coach (Fullerton’s George Horton).

The most remarkable sight, however, came moments after Irvine’s Bryan Petersen singled in the winning run to defeat Fullerton, 5-4, in front of 16,451 and extend the Anteaters’ stay here. That’s when Horton met with Irvine coach Dave Serrano on the Rosenblatt Stadium field.

“I told him I would never talk to him again. No, I told him I loved him and he said he loved me. I love him,” said Horton stopping briefly to regain his composure. "And I do. I hope he wins the tournament.”

The fourth-ranked Anteaters started the 13th inning with Taylor Holiday reaching first when he was hit by a pitch on the left arm. He appeared to turn into reliever Bryan Harris’ pitch, which irritated Horton.

Holiday (2 for 4, 2 RBIs) went to second on a sacrifice, and that was followed by an intentional walk to Cody Cipriano, which put runners at first and second.

The Anteaters had a chance to win the game on Matt Morris’ single to left, but Fullerton left fielder Josh Fellhauer threw out Holiday at the plate.

But Irvine won the game with the next at-bat, when Petersen (3 for 6) drove in Cipriano with his single off Dustin Birosak to win it.