AI-assisted summary
• Coastal Carolina’s pitching staff, ranked second nationally in ERA, is a key factor in its success.
• Most of Coastal Carolina’s pitchers are homegrown talents who have shown significant improvement this season.
• The team’s new pitching coach, Matt Williams, and catcher Caden Bodine have played crucial roles in the pitching staff’s development.

OMAHA, NE ― Jacob Morrison walked off the mound at Charles Schwab Field to a rousing standing ovation.

The Coastal Carolina starting pitcher had just finished pitching 7⅔ scoreless innings. He didn’t walk anyone and struck out seven. Four outs from the bullpen later, the Chanticleers had clinched their spot in the College World Series semifinals, where they will take on Louisville on June 18 needing one win to play for a championship.

Morrison, the Sun Belt pitcher of the year, has a perfect 12-0 record this season with a 2.08 ERA. But Coastal Carolina coach Kevin Schnall didn’t choose him to start him in its CWS opener − the Chanticleers didn’t need to.

Instead, Schnall went with a combination of Riley Eikhoff, who is 6-2 with a 2.98 ERA, and Cameron Flukey, who is 7-1 with a 3.29 ERA. Coastal Carolina won that game against Arizona.

Armed with a pitching staff that ranks second nationally in ERA, the Chanticleers are now in the driver’s seat to advance to the College World Series finals for the first time since their 2016 national title run.

‘I think we can continue to be the best pitching staff in Omaha,’ Eikhoff told USA TODAY Sports after the win over Oregon State.

Perhaps even more impressive than Coastal Carolina’s pitching success is how it happened. There aren’t any big-name transfers among the group. Nine of the Chanticleers’ 10 most used pitchers began their college careers with Coastal; the one who didn’t, closer Ryan Lynch, started at a junior college. The group is also relatively young, including two freshmen and three sophomores.

The 2024 Chanticleers were in their final season under longtime coach Gary Gilmore. They were one of the last four teams to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. When Schnall, who was assistant under Gilmore since 2016, took over before this season, the team was picked to finish fourth in the Sun Belt.

A big reason why Coastal Carolina exceeded those expectations − winning the Sun Belt regular season and tournament titles and riding a 25-game win streak − was across-the-board improvement of the Chanticleers’ returning pitchers. Many of those arms credit the success to the hire of pitching coach Matt Williams, who spent the 2024 season at South Carolina, as well as to the impact of catcher Caden Bodine, who is considered one of the top defensive catchers in the country.

‘Pounding the zone has been a huge part,’ Lynch said. ‘All of our starters are very efficient. Get early strikes, pound the zone, try to limit walks, then just having our defense behind us. … And then having (Bodine) behind the plate, just him getting pitches that would be off the plate or low that he’s getting strikes for us.’

Coastal Carolina’s 8% walk rate is the lowest among teams in Omaha and fifth-lowest of all Division I teams in 2025. But while low walk rates are often associated with a lack of high-octane stuff, that’s not the case for the Chanticleers, either. Morrison, whose fastball touches 95 mph at 6-foot-8, was ranked the No. 181 MLB draft prospect for 2025 by MLB Pipeline. Flukey, whose velocity has been up to 98 mph, is considered a top-three rounds prospect for the 2026 draft. Lefty reliever Dominick Carbone has a nasty slider.

For Morrison, a big part of his development was working through Tommy John surgery rehab. He had a 6.55 ERA in 13 starts as a freshman in 2023 but missed the entire 2024 season with injury.

‘I’ve always been a big strike thrower,’ Morrison said in the press conference after the Oregon State game. ‘My freshman year, I threw a ton of strikes but I had a hard time keeping the ball out of the middle of the plate. That was a big thing, not only in my rehab last year, but even in freshman year development, throwing pitches where I want.’

Flukey, a sophomore who had a 5.73 ERA in 19 appearances as a freshman, credits his improvement to putting more trust in his stuff and becoming more willing to attack within the strike zone. This season, he has a 3.29 ERA and cut his walk rate from 10.9% to 5.7%.

Eikhoff, a fifth-year, had an ERA above 4.43 in each of his first three seasons, but in 2025 he has a 2.98 ERA. He was the one Schnall trusted with the ball in the opening game.

Part of Williams’ impact has been the confidence he’s instilled in the pitching staff. He came in during the fall and gave each pitcher a goal to work towards. From there, the pitchers went to work to build one of the country’s best pitching staffs − one good enough to win a national championship.

‘Coach Williams has a lot of credit to (our success), I think,’ Flukey said. ‘But also, as a family, we’ve all kind of pushed each other and made sure everyone’s on their stuff, but Williams has been the start of that, and then we all kind of took a leadership role.’

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.

OMAHA, NE ― The semifinals of the 2025 Men’s College World Series get underway Wednesday, June 18.

Coastal Carolina will take on Louisville (2 p.m. ET) and LSU will face Arkansas (7 p.m. ET) at Charles Schwab Field to close out the double-elimination bracket. The Chanticleers and Tigers need just one win, while the Cardinals and Razorbacks need to win twice.

On Day 5, Louisville defeated Oregon State, 7-6, and Arkansas defeated UCLA, 7-3.

The two bracket winners will face off in a best-of-three championship series for the national title.

Here are our predictions:

Louisville vs Coastal Carolina prediction

Coastal Carolina 4, Louisville 2 — Coastal Carolina hasn’t hit a single home run in Omaha, the only team still left to say so. But the Chanticleers have won with pitching and defense, and they’re set up to be able to return Riley Eikhoff for the semifinals after a short start in Game 1. Louisville has had several incredible comebacks in Omaha, but the Cardinals are low on reliable pitching and its defense has left a bit to be desired.

Arkansas vs LSU prediction

Arkansas 7, LSU 5 ― Arkansas will have its back against the wall playing its third straight elimination game. But LSU will likely be without Kade Anderson, Anthony Eyanson and Casan Evans for this game after a rain delay forced the Tigers to pull Eyanson early from his start. The Razorbacks have more to play for in this one and their offense finally started to come alive against UCLA.

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.

Day 5 of the 2024 College World Series saw two more teams go home as the semifinal matchups were set.

Louisville defeated Oregon State, 7-6, in a nailbiter as the Beavers came back from a three-run deficit in the top of the ninth only to give up the lead in the bottom of the inning. In the nightcap, Arkansas defeated UCLA, 7-3. The Bruins had previously resumed a suspended game against LSU in the morning, losing, 9-5.

In the semifinals beginning June 18, Arkansas will face LSU and Coastal Carolina will face Louisville. The Tigers and Chanticleers need only a single win, while the Razorbacks and Cardinals must win twice to advance to the championship series.

Here are the winners and losers:

WINNERS

Home runs (finally)

After the early games in Omaha saw very few home runs hit, the long ball made more of an impact on Day 5. LSU’s Jared Jones hit a three-run homer that ultimately proved the game-winner in its game against UCLA (although the home run technically took place the night before, prior to the game being suspended due to rain). In the elimination game between Louisville and Oregon State, the Cardinals and Beavers hit two home runs apiece. Then, in the nightcap between Arkansas and UCLA, the Razorbacks got on the board with a two-run homer from Wehiwa Aloy.

After six total home runs in the first eight games, Day 5 featured five home runs.

The SEC

The SEC has had at least one team in every Men’s College World Series final since 2016, and four of the last seven championship series have featured two SEC teams (not including 2022, when now-SEC member Oklahoma participated as a member of the Big 12).

But the league has had a rough postseason. Despite qualifying 13 teams to the tournament, just four of those teams made a super regional, and two of those teams (Arkansas and Tennessee) played each other. Two SEC teams made it to Omaha, but because they were on the same side of the bracket, it was guaranteed that at least one non-SEC team would get a shot at a championship.

But now, the SEC is guaranteed to have a team opposite Louisville or Coastal Carolina with LSU and Arkansas in the semifinal. The league has a good shot of having its sixth straight champion.

Wehiwa Aloy

The SEC Player of the Year had a quiet Omaha so far. But facing a fellow star shortstop in Roch Cholowsky, Aloy had a strong outing in the elimination game, going 2-for-3 with a walk and three RBIs. He hit a two-run home run to the opposite field in the first inning, showing off the power that has him ranked as a top MLB draft prospect.

LOSERS

Defense (again)

Of 15 errors committed in the College World Series so far, eight of them were by Oregon State. That cost the Beavers dearly, as it was an error on a sacrifice bunt that set up the eventual walk-off sacrifice fly that eliminated them.

But Oregon State was only in the game at that point because of an error. In the top of the ninth inning, the Beavers were down two runs with the bases loaded and one out when Louisville shortstop Alex Alicea booted a routine double-play ball. The error allowed two runs to score.

In the ninth inning of the Arkansas-UCLA game, the Razorbacks committed two errors, both of which led to runs scoring.

The West Coast

When the Pac-12 still existed, it had been over three decades since three of the league’s teams had all made it to Omaha. In the first season after the league’s dissolution, three former Pac-12 teams made it in Arizona, Oregon State and UCLA.

But none of those three teams will make it to the semifinals. Arizona was the first team eliminated, failing to win a game in Omaha. Oregon State and UCLA were both eliminated on Day 5.

‘A lot of good players in the West, a lot of good coaches on the West. I think it has a bright future,’ UCLA coach John Savage said. ‘Bright future is maybe not the right word, because you look at the national championships and you look at the history of Omaha and West Coast teams. But things have changed. Everybody knows things have changed in terms of the facilities and the power. And the SEC clearly had a huge day, right, with Arkansas and LSU. But at the same time, you know, I think we can certainly build off this.’

Gage Wood

Gage Wood was the biggest winner from Day 4 as his 19-strikeout no-hitter against Murray State made headlines. But just a day later, Wood forgot his jersey at the hotel, forcing him to wear Zach Root’s windbreaker.

‘We teach our kids to be honest around here,’ Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn quipped when Root admitted the reason for the windbreaker.

Aria Gerson covers Vanderbilt athletics for The Tennessean. Contact her at agerson@gannett.com or on X @aria_gerson.

Connor McDavid helped Canada win the 4 Nations Face-Off, but he and his Edmonton Oilers teammates weren’t able to end Canada’s decades-long Stanley Cup drought after back-to-back years losing in the final to the Florida Panthers.

They fell in six games this year after losing in seven games in 2024. The last Canadian team to win the Cup was the 1993 Montreal Canadiens.

‘We lost to a really good team,’ McDavid told reporters after the Game 6 loss. ‘Nobody quit, nobody threw in the towel in, they’re a really good team. They’re Stanley Cup champions back to back for a reason.’

The Oilers went into the final at a disadvantage because Zach Hyman had season-ending surgery. They had trouble handling the Panthers’ forechecking and generating offense.

‘We kept trying the same thing over and over again and banging our heads against the wall,’ McDavid said.

Edmonton won the opener and staged a major rally in Game 4 to tie the final at 2-2, then lost the next two games and the series.

‘We kept saying we wanted to try to win a 2-1 game and never found a way to do that obviously,’ McDavid said. ‘They got great players. How many guys had 20-plus points in the postseason? They’re as deep as they come.’

Goalie Stuart Skinner said the Panthers’ consistency is what won the series.

‘We need to learn from this right now,’ said Skinner, who was in net for Game 6 after backup Calvin Pickard started in Game 5. ‘Letting it happen two times in a row is devastating.’

The Oilers started strong in Game 6 but couldn’t dent Sergei Bobrovsky. The Panthers took advantage of two mistakes to head to the first intermission with a 2-0 lead. They outscored Edmonton by a total of 9-0 in the first period over the past four games, leaving the Oilers chasing in every game.

Sam Reinhart (four goals) added to the Game 6 lead after a Skinner mistake when a ‘nothing shot’ by Carter Verhaeghe went off him and the Panthers quickly converted the rebound.

‘He shot it at the blocker side, which was smart. I put it in a spot where I thought it was going to be OK,’ Skinner said. ‘Obviously, it wasn’t for a second and he (Aleksander Barkov) just shot it on the backside and Reinhart was in a good spot.’

The Oilers lost McDavid and Leon Draisaitl to injuries down the stretch and didn’t have Evander Kane until the postseason. As a result, they started every series except the final on the road. They trailed the Los Angeles Kings 2-0 in the first round but rallied to beat them, the Vegas Golden Knights and the Dallas Stars before falling in the final.

‘There’s no silver lining to this,’ Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. ‘It’s heart-wrenching. It’s very difficult to handle right now. … It hurts right now and I don’t think it’s going to let up for a while.’

Zelina Vega is a big believer in manifestation. Yet not even she could believe her biggest career achievement thus far. 

After her in-ring WWE career started in 2018, Vega finally captured a singles title, winning the Women’s United States Championship by dethroning the inaugural winner Chelsea Green. 

It came at a coincidental time. Exactly one week before she won the title, she told USA TODAY Sports at the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony red carpet she hoped the championship was in her future. In a way, manifesting it would happen.

But when Vega landed the Code Red on Green and got the pin to put the gold in her hands, it was a gratifying moment she didn’t expect as she looked at what was finally in her possession.

“It’s as much a shock to you guys as it was to me,” Vega told USA TODAY Sports. “I just realized that as I looked at (the title), I was like, ‘Oh (expletive), this is real.’ That’s when I grabbed my face. That’s when I realized it was real.” 

Long desired by fans, the introduction of the Women’s United States and Intercontinental Championship in November 2024 meant more female stars could finally chase and obtain gold. Mid-card runs expand the possibilities available on the roster.

That made for the perfect opportunity for Vega, who for so long had fallen short of being a singles champion. She has some notable achievements, like the inaugural Queen of the Ring and a Women’s Tag Team Champion in 2021, but like all wrestlers, the goal is to obtain solo gold.

Not only had it been years since she grasped a major accolade, Vega came close to finally doing it several times, only to fall short.

“If I’m being honest, it was very deflating each and every single time for me, too,” she said. “But I think I always got something out of each title opportunity that I got.”

She found plenty of silver linings with the championship losses. She lost to Asuka twice in September 2020, but felt like it showed management she’s capable of performing in the spotlight. Despite losing to Rhea Ripley at Backlash 2023, she “won so much more” being able to perform in Puerto Rico as a proud Boricua. In July 2023, Vega felt rejuvenated when she battled Liv Morgan.

While there was something positive to take in each loss, Vega knew the clock was ticking on fans sticking with her. With consistent losing, the crowd loses interest and eventually moves on.

But after years of just missing out, all the shortcomings, Vega finally did it — and validated herself as someone not to overlook.

“When it happened, the crowd erupted because they’re like, ‘Oh my god, we weren’t expecting this either,’” she said. “It’s nice to prove people wrong.”

Silencing the doubters is how Vega plans to carry her title reign. She has a tough act to follow in Green, who turned the inaugural run into comedy gold with the presidential-style reign and the “Secret Hervice” in Piper Niven and Alba Fyre serving as her security.   

Vega applauded Green’s work because “she’s always able to take something and run with it,” and when it comes to continuing to bring prestige to one of the newer titles on the roster, she wants to showcase that underdog mentality she’s always had. Similar to how Rey Mysterio did with his World Heavyweight Championship run in 2006.

“When it comes to what I want to put onto this title, it is it does not matter how big, how small you are. Ultimately, it’s what you have in your heart,” Vega said.

Zelina Vega honors dad with title

Not only did she prove people wrong, but the title victory meant she could have a full circle moment. Less than a week after the win, Vega went to New York City, where she brought the championship to her dad’s memorial. Michael Angel Trinidad was one of the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and his name is on the National September 11 Memorial.

It was an emotional moment as Vega FaceTimed her mom. Both cried, knowing Vega’s father played a major role in her decision to get into wrestling. She noted her father is “always my why” to push through all obstacles, and when she put the title along her dad’s name, she was able to take it all in.

“It felt nice to just finally exhale,” Vega said. “The only times I’ve really ever done that was at Backlash (2023), winning (the title) and then at the memorial. 

“It was nice to feel like I actually accomplished part of the promise that I made so long ago,” she added.

Reuniting with husband Aleister Black in WWE

It’s a great time in Vega’s household; not only is she champion, but her husband, Aleister Black, just made his return to WWE after he left the company in 2021 and went to All Elite Wrestling. Coincidentally, Black’s return to WWE came the same night his wife won the title.

Vega said the championship match wasn’t even the top priority that day, with her focus mostly on making sure her husband was good. It wasn’t all worries though.

“I was kind of just wowed by the fact that I was even seeing him at work again. I looked like a little school girl. I was smiling all day long,” Vega said. 

It made for an even sweeter celebration. When she got backstage from her win, Black was there to greet her and soak it in. Then right afterward, Black was next to get in the ring to have his moment.

She said her and Black have been waiting for so long to work together, and now they get to be on the road together and have plenty of nostalgia kicks. She’s gone from having this crush on Black when they were both in NXT to now full blown husband and wife. She’s a champion, and her husband is back.

After years of hoping dedication would eventually pay off, just about everything seems to be going Vega’s way.

“You have dreams like that,” Vega said. “But this time I didn’t actually wake up.”

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