大象APP

OMAHA, Neb. 鈥� Two smudges of chalk 30 feet up the third base line from home plate. A wisp of chalk dust halfway down the right field line.

That鈥檚 the difference, Friday at the College World Series, between one team winning its 24th game in a row and the other, Arizona, stopping that streak.

But the Wildcats lost, 7-4, in a game full of quirks 鈥� a balk, fan interference, hits batsmen, what Arizona coach Chip Hale called 鈥渇unky bunts鈥� 鈥� to a Coastal Carolina team that has the look (and the luck) of a CWS finalist.

For the middle innings of Friday鈥檚 game, Arizona did, too, bouncing back from a bad start and shutting the door on a couple CCU rallies.

Mason White hit a homer and later drew a hit-by-pitch walk after fouling off six pitches. Garrett Hicks, a Pima Community College transfer, got two strikeouts to end the seventh inning and walked off with a roar, gesturing to an excited Arizona crowd.

But Hicks couldn鈥檛 get that third out in the bottom of the eighth before the Chanticleers鈥� Wells Sykes, on an 0-2 pitch, sliced a ball toward the right field foul line. It stayed fair, right on the chalk.

鈥淕reat pitch, almost on the ground, guy dunks it into right for a double,鈥� Hale said.

Because Schwab Field鈥檚 dimensions are so cavernous, outfielders 鈥� like Arizona鈥檚 Brendan Summerhill 鈥� tend to play deep to guard against doubles in the gap. In this case, the ball blooped in front of him.

鈥淲ould鈥檝e liked him to get to it and hold (Sykes) to a single, that would have been great,鈥� Hale said. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 just so hard where it landed and then it went to the right.鈥�

That play opened a three-run floodgate. Intentional walk. Single. And then, after Arizona brought in national Stopper of the Year Tony Pluta, a two-run double. That deficit was too big, even as the Wildcats brought the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the ninth.

They hit into a double play. It was that kind of game.

Arizona flirted with an upset and even forced Coastal Carolina to use one of its traditional starters, Cameron Flukey, in relief. The Wildcats鈥� own starter, Owen Kramkowski, battled, offsetting nine hits with seven strikeouts over five innings. He kept Arizona in it.

If he had held onto one of the worst bunt attempts you鈥檒l ever see at the CWS, Kramkowski might have gotten the win.

That鈥檚 where the smudges come in. One for each run allowed in the bottom of the second inning. You could look at those smudges all game, too, for three hours.

They occurred after CCU shortstop Ty Dooley tried to move over runners from first and second base with what would have been Coastal鈥檚 53rd sacrifice bunt of the season.

Dooley popped the ball up. For a bunt, it was way up 鈥� maybe that made it trickier to grab. Catcher Adonys Guzman, Hale said, appeared not to see the ball and third baseman Maddox Mihalakis didn鈥檛 get a great jump.

Kramkowski did. His 6-foot-3, 168-pound frame bounded toward the ball.

鈥淚 saw the ball was going to be up in the air for awhile,鈥� Kramkowski said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 see anyone near it. I knew I was going to have to make a play on it and just went all out for it, I guess, just trying to make something happen.鈥�

The ball briefly nestled in Kramkowski鈥檚 glove before spilling out as he landed.

鈥淥wen鈥檚 a great athlete,鈥� Hale said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a play he makes. He had it in his glove. I think when he hit the ground it just got jarred out.鈥�

That鈥檚 the margin Friday afternoon. A dropped bunt. A bloop double. Arizona took Coastal Carolina to late innings and left some marks on the Chanticleers鈥� vaunted pitching staff.

White bopped a homer just over the left field fence. Guzman pounded a double that hit the right field fence. Mihalakis laced a double over the infield shift 鈥� that鈥檚 one way to beat it 鈥� tying the game in the fourth. Arizona took a brief lead in the sixth thanks to three hit batsmen. Coastal answered again and again. That鈥檚 baseball.

This is, too: To reach the CWS championship series, the Chanticleers only need two more wins. The Wildcats must win four.

鈥淓verything that goes on with Omaha that鈥檚 really cool and really fun 鈥� is over for us,鈥� Hale said, recounting his postgame speech to players. 鈥淚t鈥檚 back to foxhole mentality, playing for each other and worrying about baseball. We got a lot of family here, lot of friends, they鈥檙e going to have to make hard decisions to get themselves ready for Sunday.鈥�

Arizona鈥檚 done that all year, Hale added. It lost last week 18-2 at North Carolina before winning the Super Regional. Won series over Oklahoma State, BYU and Houston after losing the first game, too.

鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be tougher,鈥� Hale said.

No margin for error. Big climb ahead.