#19 Oregon State Baseball Drops High-Scoring Affair With Alabama in Frisco
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Oregon State saw an incredible comeback attempt fall short on Saturday night after a wild ninth inning.
With the bases loaded and nobody out in the bottom of the ninth, Alabama right fielder Peyton Steele made a spectacular throw from 240 feet deep in the outfield to nail Jacob Galloway at home. The Tide held on for an 8-7 win.
Alabama got the bats going right away, jumping on standout left-hander Ethan Kleinschmit. After coming away with a run in the first, catcher Brady Neal launched an opposite-field homer in the third inning to put his team ahead 3-0.
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That was only the beginning of the early-inning slugging fest for the Tide. Jason Torres hit a solo shot in the fourth, and Eric Hines did likewise in the fifth, ending the day for Kleinschmit. Alabama tacked on one more run off of Trey Morris, and Bama took a 6-0 lead.
The Beavers, who had been shut down by Alabama left-hander Adams through four innings, got red hot in the fifth, and put together a phenomenal two-out rally. With a runner on third and two away, freshman Josh Proctor launched a mammoth home run into the left-field stands.
Oregon State wasn't done. Galloway got aboard with a two-strike opposite-field base hit, followed up with an Easton Talt double that scored Galloway. Vance scored Talt with an RBI single, and the Beavers left the fifth inning trailing by just two. Adam Haight blasted a solo homer in the sixth, making it a 6-5 game.
Alabam was able to weather this storm. They tacked on a couple of insurance runs, and took an 8-5 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning. This is where chaos started.
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The first three Beaver hitters reached. Inge and Proctor both singled, and then Galloway was hit by a pitch on an 0-2 count. Easton Talt kept the line going with a hit, making it an 8-6 game with the bases still loaded and nobody out. Alabama star shortstop Justin Lebron then committed and error, leading to another Beaver run. It was now 8-7 with the bases loaded and still no outs.
Cooper Vance came up to the plate looking to hit a ball deep to the outfield. He was able to do just this, but it couldn't get the job done. Alabama right-fielder Peyton Steele made a phenomenal throw from right field that was able to nail Galloway at home. Alabama reliever Hagan Banks got a groundball in the next at-bat, and Alabama held on for a wild 8-7 win over Oregon State.
Oregon State's record drops to 5-4 on the season. They'll end their time in Frisco on Sunday morning against Iowa with first pitch scheduled for 9 a.m. PT on D1Baseball.com.
Ben Pahl is a sportswriter and broadcaster based in Portland, Oregon. His work covering college and professional sports has been featured by the Orange Media Network at Oregon State University as well as KBVR.fm. His other career stops in sports include the Portland Pickles baseball club and the NBA G-League's Rip City Remix.