Omaha, Neb. ( Associated Press) — Conor Noland allowed one run in 7 2/3 skilful innings, Chris Lanzilli beat a three-run homer and Arkansas beat No. 2 national seed Stanford 17-2 on Saturday. World Series game in 34 years.
The Razorbacks knocked out Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year Alex Williams in the fifth inning and recorded their biggest margin of victory in 36 CWS games. It was Stanford’s biggest defeat in their 73 CWS games.
Hoggs (44-19) will play against the winner of Saturday night’s game between Auburn and Mississippi on Monday. Stanford (47-17) will play the loser in the elimination game.
Arkansas scored 11 runs in the last three innings and finished with a season-high 21 hits, including Cayden Wallace’s 30th career homer in ninth.
Noland (8-5) surrendered a homer to Stanford leadoff man Brock Jones on his third pitch, but with the help of a defense that made a double play to get him out of two jams, Stanford did not score again. did until Carter Graham greeted reliever Cole Ramge with a base hit in eighth place.
Noland threw only 79 pitches on a hot, humid afternoon, when the temperature soared to 106 degrees. He inspired 11 groundball outs and seven flyouts, and his only strike came in the sixth inning. Aside from Jones’ homer, all the Cardinals against him were five singles and walks.
Razorbacks fans stood up to greet him, many of them “calling the hogs,” as he hugged teammates and walked from the mound to the dugout.
Williams (8-4) struggled for a third straight start in the NCAA Tournament. He gave a triple to Braydon Webb on the first pitch of the game, hit a batsman and issued a walk but was only out of the innings 1–0.
Williams settled the next three innings, then dropped back-to-back singles in the fifth, before Lanzilli converted a dozen rows into left-center seats to make it 4–1.
When Robert Moore followed with a base hit, the day was over for Williams, who has conceded 16 runs in his last 10 1/3 innings (13.94 ERA).
Hoggs, who managed only three hits in a 5–0 loss to Stanford in February, suffered the Cardinal’s worst defeat in the CWS since Arizona State beat Wichita State 19–1 in 1988.
It was Arkansas’ first win over the Cardinals since the 1985 CWS.
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