UCLA Heads to Omaha After Dominant Super Regional Performance
The UCLA baseball team (47-16) is headed to the College World Series in Omaha after sweeping UTSA (47-15) in two games at Jackie Robinson Stadium last weekend. The Bruins outscored the Roadrunners 9-2 and closed the series with 16 consecutive scoreless innings from their pitching staff.
By Earl Heath | Contributing Sports Writer
The UCLA baseball team (47-16) is headed to the College World Series in Omaha after sweeping UTSA (47-15) in two games at Jackie Robinson Stadium last weekend. The Bruins outscored the Roadrunners 9-2 and closed the series with 16 consecutive scoreless innings from their pitching staff.
“Again, I think it was a team effort—a lot of guys being on the same page,” said UCLA head coach John Savage. “That’s what we’ve been throughout the season. We’ve taken some lumps along the way, but for the most part, they’ve stayed together through thick and thin. To their credit, they believe in one another.”
Savage credited the team’s dominant pitching and championship-level defense as keys to the victory.
“We had a bunch of naysayers questioning our pitching, and you can’t question that now,” he said. “We had a lot of really good at-bats. At the end of the day, I’m just really excited—for the guys, for the alumni, the fans, and everyone involved. This team doesn’t feel like this is the end of the journey. We’ve talked a lot about going to Omaha and playing well. That’s still the goal.”
Road to the CWS
UCLA will face Murray State in Game 1 of the 2025 College World Series on Saturday, June 14. First pitch is scheduled for just after 11 a.m. PT (2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. local time in Omaha).
The Bruins are in Bracket 2, along with Murray State, LSU, and Arkansas. The winner of UCLA vs. Murray State will face the winner of LSU vs. Arkansas in the next round. With LSU and Arkansas considered tournament favorites, the Bruins are in a strong position to shift the balance of power with a win.
The CWS will feature at least 12 games in its preliminary and semifinal rounds, with up to 14 games possible. The two bracket winners will advance to the best-of-three championship series beginning Saturday, June 21.
Murray State’s Surprising Run
Murray State enters Omaha as a No. 4 seed making its first-ever College World Series appearance. The Racers upset regional host Ole Miss twice to win the Oxford Regional and then rallied to defeat Duke in the Durham Super Regional.
They leaned on powerful hitting against Ole Miss, scoring 9 and 12 runs in their two wins. Against Duke, they won Game 2 in a 19-run outburst and clinched the series in Game 3 with a tight 5-4 win, thanks to strong pitching that limited Duke to just four runs.
Bruins Star Shortstop Garners National Honors
UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky continues to collect accolades. Earlier this week, he was named the Perfect Game College Player of the Year, adding to an already impressive résumé.
Cholowsky also earned ABCA First Team All-West Region honors and made history in UCLA’s first Big Ten season by becoming the first Bruin to win both Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. He’s a finalist for the Brooks Wallace Award and the Dick Howser Trophy, and a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award.
A Perfect Game Freshman All-American in 2024, Cholowsky has played a major role in leading UCLA to its first College World Series appearance since 2013.
