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No. 8 UC Santa Barbara (43-19-1) will face Arizona (45-22) today at 4 p.m., Tucson time. The elimination game will be broadcast live on ESPN and WatchESPN (ESPN3). Should the Wildcats win, they will face Oklahoma State in the bracket final. Arizona would need to beat the Cowboys two consecutive times to reach the CWS final. The first game against OSU would be Friday at noon.
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Information from the Arizona media relations department contributed to this report.
NOTES OF ARIZONA’S GAME TODAY VS. UC SANTA BARBARA AT 4 P.M.
• Arizona may start Kevin Ginkel in tonight’s game. Arizona coach Jay Johnson reportedly will not announce a starter until close to game time. Since pitching a two-hit shutout at ASU on April 26, Ginkel is 3-1 with a 1.86 ERA in 38 2/3 innings, allowing just 29 hits. Overall on the season, has posted a 4-1 record with a 2.82 ERA in 54 1/3 innings.
• Arizona lost for the first time in seven games at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha in the 1-0 loss to Oklahoma State on Monday. It also marked the first time the Wildcats failed to score first in that park. Prior to the 1-0 deficit in the fourth inning, Arizona had never trailed in 60 innings.
• The Wildcats lost a one-run game for the first time since April 17 (6-5 vs. Stanford). UA had won seven straight
one-run games, including a 3-0 mark in the postseason.
• Arizona lost for the first time this season when holding an opponent to two runs or less. Entering the game, the Wildcats were 23-0 in such games.
• Zach Gibbons’ first-inning single was his 97th hit of the season, tying Alex Mejia and Lynn Garrett for 9th all-time in a single season at Arizona.
• Bobby Dalbec set a career high with 12 strikeouts, surpassing the 10 he registered at Washington State in 2015. The dozen strikeouts tied for the most in a single pitcher in a College World Series game played at TD Ameritrade Park. … Dalbec became the seventh straight Arizona starter to go at least seven innings when pitching at TD Ameritrade Park.
• Dalbec and Nathan Bannister (11 strikeouts Saturday vs. Miami) are the first pair of pitchers to each record double-digit strikeouts in the same College World Series since UCLA in 2012.
• Arizona was held without an extra base hit for the first time in 14 games.
• The Wildcats were shutout for only the second time this season. It was the first time the program has been shut out at the College World Series since June 13, 1970 (4-0 loss to Florida State).
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@ArizonaBaseball Hitting Coach Alan Zinter wishing his fellow Wildcats the best of luck in the @NCAACWS! pic.twitter.com/4yy6AjZe8w
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) June 21, 2016
Cats will miss Gauchos ace Jr. Shane Bieber (Indians 4th rd pick) who tossed13 straight starts of 7 or more innings. He pitched Sat
— Dave Cooney (@CooneyLand) June 22, 2016
Andrew Checketts' UCSB roster is entirely composed of California players. Not one from any other state. All 37 from California.
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) June 20, 2016
Tweet from last year after UCSB was eliminated by USC in the regionals. Gauchos coach Andrew Checketts was rumored to be a leading candidate for the Arizona job.
USC just eliminated UCSB, which means Greg Byrne can speak with HC Andrew Checketts about the Arizona vacancy as early as tonight.
— Andy Blaho (@AndyBlaho) May 31, 2015
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Preview and links for our game vs UCSB are live on the website. We play at 4 pm MST on ESPN. https://t.co/PH3s6ViVup pic.twitter.com/TmBksKUM8Z
— Arizona Baseball (@ArizonaBaseball) June 22, 2016
UCSB NOTES
• UCSB moved to 13-22 all-time in the postseason, and 6-1 this year with its 5-3 win over Miami on Monday.
• UCSB is 28-2 with the lead after six innings. The Gauchos are 30-2 when scoring at least five runs.
• The Gauchos have only scored in three of the past 30 innings, twice plating four runs in a frame (ninth inning
on June 12, sixth inning today)
• During the NCAA Tournament UCSB pinch-hitters are 3-for-6 with six RBI and two runs scored. Over the last three NCAA Tournament games, UCSB pinch-hitters have accounted for six RBIs. The rest of the team has driven in three.
• Second baseman JJ Muno’s first-inning single extended his hit streak to seven. He has reached base in 14 straight games.
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Some teams keep emotion in check. Not @UCSB_Baseball. "Ride it and enjoy it." https://t.co/3arkCIohSQ pic.twitter.com/SBdCZR268W
— World-Herald CWS (@OWHcws) June 22, 2016
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon.
