Unfazed By Critics, Kentucky Delivers Gritty Victory

MORGANTOWN, W.V. – Forced to listen to its critics all week long, Kentucky tuned out the noise and delivered a gritty effort in a 6-5 victory over No. 2-seeded Wake Forest in Friday’s Morgantown Regional opener to win the all-important first game of the NCAA Tournament.

The Wildcats now are 32-21 overall and will face the winner of top-seeded West Virginia and Binghamton at 5 p.m. ET on Saturday.

The Cats erased a 3-0 deficit over the back half of the game and scored the game-winning run with vintage UK baseball in the ninth inning. Jayce Tharnish, who two innings before made a sensational running catch while slamming into the wall, lined a single to right field with one out. After the second out he took matters into his own hands.

Tharnish stole second base. Then he saw Wake Forest was not covering third base so he swiped it, too. While Tyler Cerny battled off two-strike pitches at the plate, Tharnish bided his time. When the Demon Deacons uncorked a wild pitch, Tharnish scampered home with the winning run.

Lefty Jackson Soucie then jogged to the mound in the ninth and recorded a perfect inning that ended with Carson Hansen making a sliding snag of a line drive to left field.

Before the ninth, UK battled back from three runs down against the vaunted Wake Forest pitching staff. Freshman Caeden Cloud broke the ice with an RBI double in the fifth to help chase Wake ace Chris Levonas. The Cats loaded the bases in the sixth on two walks and a HBP before freshman Braxton Van Cleave, making his return to the lineup, served a soft two-strike liner over the third baseman’s head to score two. After a wild pitch run, Hansen added a sacrifice fly for the four-run inning.

NOTES

• Kentucky is 32-21 on the season.
• UK Coach Nick Mingione is in his 10th season at the helm and now owns a 325-213 career record.
  • Mingione is the second-winningest coach in school history.
  • Mingione is 16-10 in the NCAA Tournament.
    • He is 14-4 in the regional round.
  • This was his first matchup vs. Wake Forest.

• UK scored four runs in the sixth inning. It is the 51^st time this season the Cats have scored three or more runs in an inning.
• IF Luke Lawrence has reached safely in 54 of his past 56 games.
• OF Jayce Tharnish scored the game-winning run.
  • He has a hit in 26 of his past 28 games.
  • He has reached safely in 30 consecutive games.
  • He stole two bases, both in the ninth inning.
• OF Braxton Van Cleave returned two weeks after a scary on-field collision.
  • He had a two-run single that tied the game at three.
• IF Caeden Cloud had an RBI double.
• RHP Jaxon Jelkin gutted out 6.0 innings.
• LHP Jackson Soucie pitched a perfect ninth for his second save.

ON DECK

UK will face the winner of West Virginia/Binghamton at 5 p.m. ET on Saturday.