Power still missing, Georgia eliminated from College World Series

OMAHA, Neb. – When the final out was made, Georgia players remained at the railing of their third-base dugout. Leaning against the green padding, they watched Oklahoma players celebrate what they had come here for: a chance to play for the national championship.

After a few moments, they clustered together in the middle of the dugout for a final message from coach Wes Johnson.

The brief huddle ended. Players exchanged hugs and headed back to the locker room.

And a season that will be remembered for a long time by Georgia baseball fans was over.

The Bulldogs’ joyride reached its final destination Wednesday night. Their second national championship will have to wait at least another year.

A historic season with ample accomplishments to celebrate concluded with disappointment, as the Bulldogs were eliminated by the Sooners 11-4 in the championship round of their double-elimination bracket at the College World Series.

Needing two wins over the Sooners to make it to the final, Georgia got none.

The final score reflected Georgia’s inability to create offense in its four games in Omaha.

A team built on a foundation of unrivaled power and exceptional chemistry may have brought the latter to its first College World Series since 2008, but it left the former back in Athens.

In its four games, Georgia hit .183 and slugged .336, well under its season averages of .326 and .628 before Omaha, both top five in Division I.

The light and shadows of Charles Schwab Field appeared to affect the Bulldogs, who played in the evening session for all four of their games as the sun set on Omaha. But the same conditions didn’t stop Oklahoma from smashing five home runs off Georgia pitching Wednesday.

And the light conditions didn’t appear to be a factor in the fifth and sixth innings, when Georgia tried to rally from a 4-0 deficit after four innings with two of its biggest bats at the plate.

The Bulldogs scored one in the bottom of the fifth to cut the lead to 4-1 and had one out and one on with arguably their two best hitters, Tre Phelps and Dan Jackson, coming to the plate. But Phelps popped up and Jackson struck out.

The Bulldogs started the bottom of the sixth down 5-1 but used a single, an error and three walks (two with the bases loaded) to close the gap to 5-3. With two outs, Phelps came to the plate with a chance to tie the game or even put the Bulldogs ahead.

However, he grounded out to third for a fielder’s choice to end the inning.

In Omaha, the All-American Phelps and the national player of the year Jackson were a combined 6-for-38 with three extra-base hits at the top of the order. After doubling in what will surely be his final collegiate at-bat in the bottom of the ninth, Jackson was removed for a pinch runner to warm applause from Georgia fans.

After the rally short-circuited in the bottom of the sixth Georgia collapsed after that as Oklahoma extended the lead far enough that coach Wes Johnson could make the gallant gesture of bringing in two lesser-used relievers in the top of the ninth to furnish them with the experience of playing in this iconic baseball festival.

Oklahoma, which made the 64-team tournament field despite a losing record in conference play, will play North Carolina in a three-game series for the national championship starting Saturday. Having ousted Georgia Tech in the Atlanta Regional, the Sooners can claim Georgia state championship bragging rights.

In the bigger picture, to be one of the final four teams standing is a tribute to a team that was picked to finish ninth in the SEC before the season.

The Bulldogs became just the 23rd team in SEC history to win both the regular-season and tournament championships. The tournament title was Georgia’s first. It rightly earned the Bulldogs the No. 3 national seed.