Dan McDonnell hasn’t shied away from conversations about how the past two years have gone.
The longtime Louisville head baseball coach had established a level of success with the program, which missed the postseason in 2023 and 2024. Injuries played a part, and McDonnell shouldered the blame while discussing his frustration with a lack of resources.
But with strong faith, the support of his wife and a talented roster, McDonnell has led Louisville back to the promised land. Louisville (40-22) recorded a 3-2 win over Miami on Sunday at Jim Patterson Stadium for its first College World Series appearance since 2019. That was also the last time the Cardinals hosted a super regional.
Here are three moments from Game 3 that helped lead the Cardinals to Omaha for a sixth time:
Eddie King, Jr. is ending his college career in style. The senior has been one of the best hitters all season and has been especially dominant during the postseason. Although his efforts came up short on Saturday, King kept it going for the Cardinals in Game 3.
With the game tied, King’s fly ball just missed the Hurricanes’ centerfielder for a double that drove in Jake Munroe for the 3-2 U of L lead. Defensively, King made sure the Cardinals preserved the lead in the top of the eighth. After Dorian Gonzalez’s flyout to left, King made the throw infield to prevent Daniel Cuvet, who doubled to reach, from moving up a base.
Prior to King getting Louisville’s first lead of the game, the Cardinals had an opportunity to take the lead earlier in the game but couldn’t convert runners into runs.
Lucas Moore led off the bottom of the fifth inning with a base hit before Munroe and King each drew one-out walks to load the bases. But the Cardinals weren’t able to cash in on the opportunity to take the lead.
Hurricanes pitcher Will Smith, who walked Munroe and King, buckled down and struck out Garret Pike, who swung at all three pitches. A fielder’s choice at third base then ended the inning, leaving the game tied at 2.
Louisville ended the game 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position.
Similarly, the Cardinals prevented the Hurricanes from busting the game open in the following inning. With one on and one out, Jake Schweitzer walked two batters to load the bases. But a 1-2-3 double play eliminated the scoring threat.
The Hurricanes seemed poised to follow up Saturday’s offensive performance with another strong showing. They had a hit in each of the first two innings leading up to the third. Michael Torres notched a one-out single then ran home on Max Galvin’s two-run homer over the right field wall. It was only his eighth of the season, allowing Miami the early 2-0 lead. But Miami only had two hits over the next three innings and didn’t score again.
- When: June 13-22/23
- Where: Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska
- Structure: Double elimination, best-of-three final series
- Streaming/TV: ESPN and ABC
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Reach Louisville football, women’s basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit.
