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Alex Faedo, Florida advance to face LSU in College World Series finals

 
Florida’s Austin Langworthy scores on a single by Mike Rivera in the second inning during a 3-0 victory over TCU.
Florida’s Austin Langworthy scores on a single by Mike Rivera in the second inning during a 3-0 victory over TCU.
Published June 25, 2017

OMAHA, Neb. — Alex Faedo pitched three-hit ball for 71/3 innings in a second straight strong performance against TCU, and Florida moved to the College World Series finals with a 3-0 win Saturday night.

No. 3 national seed Florida (50-19) will play No. 4 seed LSU (52-18) in an all-SEC best-of-three finals beginning at 7 Monday night (ESPN). The Tigers will be the home team in Game 1.

For the first time, the Gators have won 50 games for three straight seasons. Florida will be playing for its first national title in baseball.

The Gators went 2-1 against the Tigers during the regular season in a home series. Florida won the SEC East and LSU won the West.

Faedo (9-2), a former Alonso standout, struck out 11, just as he did last Sunday in a 3-0 win over the Horned Frogs (50-18). Michael Byrne finished for his 18th save.

Faedo reached for his right calf in apparent pain after delivering a pitch to Josh Watson in the seventh, and he grabbed the calf again when he struck Watson out to end the inning. He got a groundout to start the eighth then left after Austen Wade singled. Zach Humphreys greeted Byrne with a single, but the star closer struck out Evan Skoug and got Cam Warner to fly out.

The Gators had struggled on offense since they arrived in Omaha, but with Faedo holding down the Frogs they mustered enough against Jared Janczak (9-2). Leading 2-0, they got an insurance run in the seventh when Deacon Liput hit a two-out ground ball that hit first base and bounced away for a single, scoring Christian Hicks from third.

In two CWS starts, Faedo pitched 141/3 scoreless innings, allowing five hits with 22 strikeouts and six walks. He and his fellow starters have 42 strikeouts in 26 innings at the CWS.

Florida shortstop Dalton Guthrie suffered a lower-body injury after he struck out to end the third inning. His status for the finals is not clear.

Florida had a chance to advance Friday night but fell 9-2 to TCU. Evan Skoug hit a bases-clearing double and four Horned Frogs pitchers combined on a five-hitter. UF starter Jackson Kowar (12-1) struck out seven of the first eight he faced on his way to a career-high 11 strikeouts.

LSU 6, OREGON STATE 1: Caleb Gilbert held the No. 1 national seed to two hits in 71/3 innings, Michael Papierski homered from both sides of the plate and the Tigers beat the Beavers for the second straight day. LSU won its third straight elimination game. Oregon State (56-6) finished the season with a .903 winning percentage — the best since Texas' mark of .908 in 1982. "That's why you have to play the games," LSU coach Paul Mainieri said. "Our kids embraced the challenge." Papierski is the first to homer twice in a CWS game since TCU's Bryan Holaday in 2010. LSU bounced back from a 13-1 loss to Oregon State on Monday to reach the finals for the first time since winning the title in 2009.