Creighton eliminates defending champ Oregon State 4-1

CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) – Isaac Collins hit a solo homer in the top of the third inning, giving No. 2 seed Creighton an early lead it would not relinquish in a 4-1 victory that eliminated defending national champion Oregon State on Saturday.

The Bluejays (39-12) play the loser of Saturday’s second game between No. 4 seed Cincinnati and No. 3 seed Michigan Sunday in another elimination game.

Oregon State (36-20-1), the No. 16 national seed, was the first national seed eliminated in the 2019 NCAA Tournament. After losing to Cincinnati 7-6 in their first game Friday, the top-seeded Beavers were in the difficult position of needing four straight wins to advance to a super regional.

After seven innings, the Beavers trailed 4-1 and had as many errors (three) as hits.

OSU fans gave catcher Adley Rutschman a standing ovation after his deep fly out to center leading off the bottom of the eighth, acknowledging what was likely his last plate appearance in a Beavers uniform. The Pac-12 Player of the Year has been projected as the No. 1 overall pick in next week’s Major League Baseball draft.

The Bluejays, who were shut out Friday by Michigan 6-0 in their first regional game, added two more runs in the third after Collins’ homer, helped by two OSU errors, to extend the lead to 3-0.

With the score 3-1 in the seventh, defense hurt the Beavers again. Creighton had runners at the corners with one out. Reliever Dylan Pearce went for a pickoff play at third, but third baseman George Mendoza could not handle the throw and was charged with an error. The miscue allowed Will Robertson to score, giving the Bluejays a 4-1 advantage.