OMAHA, Neb. — Arkansas didn’t want to name a starting pitcher for its second game of the College World Series after Saturday’s win over Stanford and still wasn’t quite ready when it wrapped up practice the next day.
Speaking to the media at Nebraska-Omaha’s stadium, where the Razorbacks worked out for about an hour Sunday morning, head coach Dave Van Horn said he and his staff were still weighing their options.
After initially just saying it was between a right-hander and a left-hander, he did reveal the two primary options were redshirt sophomore Will McEntire and junior Zack Morris — both of which will likely pitch regardless who starts.
“We're not 100% sure, honestly,” Van Horn said. “We talked about it again this morning on the bus on the way over here. … We're still thinking about it. I think by the end of the day, we'll know 100%.”
McEntire got the nod in Game 2 of the Chapel Hill Super Regional and turned in arguably the best start of his career, pitching 5 2/3 scoreless innings against a dangerous North Carolina lineup.
The performance lowered his ERA to 2.81 in 41 2/3 innings, the fifth-most on the team. That’s a lot of work for a guy who didn’t even pitch until the 32nd game of the season, but he’s steadily seen his role evolve from midweek starter to weekend long reliever to weekend starter and now a legitimate No. 2 option behind ace Connor Noland.
“He went through some battles, but one thing that he does is throw a lot of strikes,” Webb said. “So he gets the defense on their toes and helps get through the ball game.”
Morris has pitched throughout the season, but really emerged as a key arm down the stretch. He’s thrown 33 1/3 innings across 20 appearances, posting a minuscule 1.89 ERA.
Most of his outings were out of the bullpen, including a handful of three-inning stings during SEC play, but his performance in the Stillwater Regional showed he was a viable option as a starter.
Although he went only 3 1/3 innings in the winner-take-all game against Oklahoma State, Morris didn’t give up a single run to a team that had averaged 16.3 runs in its previous four games that weekend. That came just two days after he gave up only two runs to the Cowboys in three innings of relief.
Another one of his three-inning relief appearances came against Ole Miss on May 1, when he pitched a scoreless middle third of the rubber match to earn a victory.
While Van Horn is weighing his options, Ole Miss has no doubts surrounding its second starter in Omaha. The Rebels will send freshman phenom Hunter Elliott to the mound.
The left-hander is coming off back-to-back fantastic starts in the NCAA Tournament, racking up 18 strikeouts and allowing only one earned run in 12 1/3 innings. His repertoire is reminiscent of former Ole Miss standout Doug Nikhazy.
“He can spot it up with the best of them,” Van Horn said. “He reminds me of Nikhazy a little bit, and I think he reminds them of him as well. He's a strike-thrower, he's mature, strong for his age. He has been really good.”
While he has been sensational in the postseason, Elliott has also been really good all year. He wasn’t originally in the weekend rotation, but worked his way into the No. 2 spot in SEC play, compiling solid numbers along the way.
In addition to a 2.82 ERA, the left-hander has an impressive 1.16 WHIP and is holding opponents to a .202 batting average while averaging 12.4 strikeouts per nine innings. He also rarely gets hit hard, giving up just 10 extra-base hits in 67 innings and allowing a .277 slugging percentage.
“When you look at all these outstanding numbers, they’re all against SEC competition,” Bianco said. “This isn’t where some guys get through the top part of your schedule, can get off to a great start and then their ERA tends to balloon a little bit.”
The stage hasn’t seemed to bother him pitching in the Coral Gables Regional and Hattiesburg Super Regional, but this will be his first time pitching in front of 20,000-plus fans at Charles Schwab Field in the College World Series.
He had an opportunity to get a taste of the atmosphere while watching his teammates beat Auburn 5-1 on Saturday and doesn’t seem to think he’ll be rattled by it when it’s his turn to take the mound.
“It’s just another game,” Elliott said. “Once you get out of the first inning or once you throw the first couple pitches, it’s time to lock in and just treat it like another game and you against your opponent.”
Beyond the starting pitchers, both teams should have fresh bullpens thanks to lengthy starts on Saturday.
Arkansas’ Connor Noland and Ole Miss’ Dylan DeLucia each went 7 2/3 innings and neither team burned any relievers. Kole Ramage and Zebulon Vermillion closed it out for the Razorbacks, but Van Horn said they’d be available Monday if needed. The same is likely true for key reliever Josh Mallitz, as he needed just 15 pitches to record the final four outs for the Rebels.
