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TCU beats Texas Tech 5-3 at CWS on Baker’s 9th-inning homer

Sports

June 19th, 2016 by Ric Hanson

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Luken Baker hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the top of the ninth and TCU beat No. 5 national seed Texas Tech 5-3 on Sunday in a College World Series meeting of Big 12 rivals. The Horned Frogs (48-16) trailed by a run after Hunter Hargrove’s tiebreaking double in the bottom of the eighth. But after reliever Robert Dugger issued a walk to start the ninth and gave up a single to Evan Skoug, Baker sent a towering shot just inside the left-field foul pole into the seats above the bullpen.

Freshman closer Durbin Feltman came on and pitched a perfect ninth for his ninth save. TCU, in the CWS for the third straight year, will play a Bracket 2 winners’ game Tuesday night against the winner of Sunday night’s game between Coastal Carolina and No. 1 Florida. The Red Raiders (46-19), who went 0-2 in 2014 in their only other CWS appearance, will try to stay alive against the Coastal Carolina-Florida loser on Tuesday afternoon.

Cam Warner homered for the third time in the NCAA Tournament and sixth time this season to put TCU up 2-1 in the fifth, but Tanner Gardner doubled in a run in the bottom half to tie it.