2010 NCAA Regional Baseball Tournament: Fayetteville Regional

Washington State 10, Arkansas 7 - Washington St. earns rematch for regional title on Monday

The Washington State Cougars could feel the Arkansas Razorbacks breathing down the back of their necks.

Just when their place in the NCAA baseball tournament was slipping away, however, the boys from the Pacific Northwest managed to turn back the homestanding Hogs and prolong their season.

On a day when Arkansas could have punched its ticket to the upcoming super regionals, Wazzu managed to extend the Fayetteville Regional and bring about a one-shot deal on Monday night for the regional championship. It's all because the Cougars shrugged off a bold Arkansas rally.

Up 7-1 after four and a half innings, the Cougs watched the Hogs score two runs in the fifth, two more in the sixth, and one in the seventh to make the score 7-6. With a pro-Arkansas crowd going Hog wild at Baum Stadium, Washington State needed to pad its lead.

In the top of the eighth, that's exactly what the Cougars did.

Derek Jones singled in a run and Matt Fanelli brought home another run with a fielder's choice, as Washington State took advantage of two errors by the Arkansas infield to turn a tenuous 7-6 edge into a 10-6 bulge. Wazzu reliever Chad Arnold - who had entered in the sixth inning and had already conceded two runs to Arkansas - was able to make the four-run lead stand up. He allowed a lonely run in the bottom of the eighth and then set down the Hogs in the ninth to seal the win. Mike Bolsinger (6-4) took the loss for Arkansas after giving up seven runs in 4 1/3 innings. Bolsinger didn't survive the five-run fifth inning which gave Washington State a 7-1 cushion.

Elimination Game (Earlier)

Washington State 9, Kansas State 6 - Kansas State eliminated from regional

If Washington State hadn't made a bold comeback early on Sunday against Kansas State, it wouldn't have had the chance to knock off Arkansas and survive into Monday.

The Cougars were down 6-1 after four innings, but they got off the deck to knock out the Wildcats. WSU produced two runs in the fifth to pull within 6-3, and then the powerhouse from the Palouse produced six runs in the sixth to transform this tilt.

Garry Kuykendall lashed a two-run double to tie the game at 6-6, and after a walk to Cody Bartlett, Wazzu slugger Derek Jones slammed a three-run homer off KSU reliever Thomas Rooke to make the score 9-6. With Wazzu reliever Richie Ochoa turning in an outstanding outing, Kansas State was never able to undo the damage of that six-run sixth.

Ochoa (2-2) picked up the win after shutting out KSU in 4 1/3 stellar innings. Starting pitcher Justin Lindsey (4-4) took the loss for Kansas State after getting knocked out in that fateful sixth frame.

Seth Harvey threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings to get the save for Washington State.

Washington State vs Arkansas - NCAA Regional Baseball Recap