A record crowd of 9,651 was on hand to watch the Tigers advance to Omaha in its inaugural season at the new stadium.
LSU (51-16) extended its win streak to 10 games and improved to 117-44 all-time in NCAA Tournament games, which is the highest winning percentage (.727) in tournament history. The Tigers will be making back-to-back trips to the CWS for the first time since 2004.
Rice finished its season with a record of 43-18.
“Omaha, here come the Tigers,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri. “We’re going to go up to Omaha and I know our fans are going to go up. We’re going to have a lot of fun up there. This year we’re going to go up there with seven great ball clubs. I figure one team has to win, so it might as well be us. We’re going to go up there with the idea that we’re going to put another trophy in the trophy case and give it our best effort.
“I don’t know if I feel great or relieved. This has been a real grind to get to this point because this season started with such promise for our team. Our kids have been under the microscope all year, and a lot has been expected of them. They just are so remarkable in their consistency, poise, composure and how they have been able to handle those expectations. I’m just so happy for all of them. They deserve it. Now we go get to have a great experience together in Omaha.”
Coleman (13-2) earned his fourth straight win as the SEC Pitcher of the Year allowed nine hits and struck out five batters. Freshman closer Matty Ott secured the victory with his 16th save of the season.
Rice starter Ryan Berry (7-2) suffered only his second loss of the season after giving up five earned runs on eight hits and four walks in five innings of work.
Third baseman Derek Helenihi led the Tigers at the plate with two hits and two RBI. The senior also blasted his fourth home run of the season. Designated hitter Blake Dean also had two hits on the afternoon, and catcher Micah Gibbs and center fielder Mikie Mahtook each drove in one run apiece.
The Tigers got off to a quick start, jumping out to a 1-0 advantage in the top of the first. Second baseman DJ LeMahieu led off the game with a double down the right field line, and left fielder Ryan Schimpf and Gibbs each walked to load the bases with one out. Mahtook then followed with an RBI grounder to bring home LeMahieu.
Rice second baseman Brock Holt tied the game at 1-1 in the third with a solo shot over the wall in right center field.
LSU regained the lead with a run in the top of the fourth to go up, 2-1. Following a double by right fielder Jared Mitchell and a base hit by first baseman Sean Ochinko, Helenihi singled through the middle of the infield to plate Mitchell.
However, the Owls came back to tie it at 2-2 in the bottom of the frame. Designated hitter Diego Seastrunk doubled into the gap in left center and reached third on a fielding error before left fielder Michael Fuda drove him in on a perfectly placed bunt single down the first base line.
The Tigers added two runs in the top of the fifth to take a 4-2 advantage. Schimpf walked to lead off the inning, and Dean drilled a double into the gap in left center to put two men in scoring position.
Gibbs then drove in Schimpf on an RBI grounder to second, and Dean later scored on a wild pitch by Berry.
Helenihi launched a solo homer to the opposite field to give LSU a 5-2 lead in the sixth inning, but Seastrunk returned the favor with a solo dinger of his own in the bottom of the frame to cut the deficit to 5-3.
Meanwhile, Coleman remained strong deep into the game, allowing only one hit in the seventh and eighth innings and keeping the Owls off the scoreboard.
Ott entered in the ninth and retired three of the four batters he faced. The right-hander fanned Holt to end the game.
OXFORD, Miss. -- Sophomore left-hander Drew Pomeranz turned in another gritty performance for the Rebels, but it wasn’t enough as No. 5 Virginia (47-13-1) took advantage of late errors to defeat No. 8 Ole Miss (44-19) by a score of 4-3 on Saturday.
The Cavalier win evened the weekend series at a game each and forces a third game on Sunday that will see one team advance to the College World Series while the other team ends its season. Game three will begin at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
Pomeranz enthused the record crowd of 10,323 as he worked 7.0 innings and struck out 10, all while holding the Cavaliers to two runs on seven hits before leaving the game with the Rebels leading 3-2. But with one out on the board in the eighth, a throwing error from Rebel second baseman Evan Button allowed Danny Hultzen to reach base and sparked a Virginia rally as the Cavaliers pushed two unearned runs across the plate to take the lead and eventually claim the win.
Freshman David Goforth (1-1) took the loss in relief for the Rebels as he allowed two unearned runs on one hit with a walk in the loss. Goforth worked the eighth as the Rebels were the visiting team and Virginia did not bat in the ninth.
Andrew Carraway (8-1) picked up the win for the Cavaliers as he worked 3.1 innings in relief and held the Rebels scoreless on four hits and struck out two. Matt Packer picked up his third save with a walk in 0.2 innings of work.
Ole Miss struck quickly in the first inning as Logan Power hit a two-run shot to scoreJordan Henry who reached on a bloop double to open the inning.
The Cavaliers then chipped away at the lead, pushing a run across in the third as Josh Barr drew a leadoff walk in to open the inning. Barr then stole second before scoring two batters later when Tyler Cannon ripped a single up the middle to trim the lead to 2-1.
Virginia tied things in the fourth with another run as Barr again came up big for the Cavaliers with a two-out RBI double that scored Danny Hultzen from first and knotted the game at two.
Ole Miss moved back into the lead in the seventh when Matt Snyder scored on a single to left from Kyle Henson. Snyder walked before moving to second on a walk of Matt Smith.
The Cavaliers then took advantage of the pair of Rebel errors in the eighth to claim the first lead of the game. With one out on the board, Hultzen reached on a throwing error on a routine grounder to second. He then stole second before a walk of Steven Proscia put two men on base. Franco Valdes then came up with an RBI single through the right side to drive in Hultzen and leave runners at the corners with the game tied at three.
Barr again came up with a big at bat for the Cavaliers as the left fielder hit into a fielder’s choice to short that scored Proscia from third and provided what proved to be the game-winning run.
Ole Miss got a man on third in the top of the ninth as Zach Miller opened the ninth with a double down the left field line and moved to third on a sac bunt from Michael Hubbard. Ole Miss could not get him home, however, as the Cavaliers got the next two batters out to claim the win and force a deciding game on Sunday.
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