Huskies’ Dream Ends in Oklahoma City
The Story: The baseball team lost 3-1 to Oklahoma State last night in a winner-take-all NCAA tournament regional final in Oklahoma City. It’s the second consecutive year the Huskies have lost when on the cusp of advancing to the Super Regionals and it ends their third appearance in the NCAA tournament in the last four seasons.
BATS FALL SILENT: After scoring 31 runs on 47 hits in their previous three games, the Huskies couldn’t manage anything more than five singles against the Cowboys last night. UConn took the lead in the top of the fifth inning when Anthony Prado singled up the middle to score Thad Phillips, but the Huskies couldn’t push through another run and Oklahoma State answered in the bottom of the inning with a solo home run to left field off Caleb Wurster.
BROKEN OPEN: The Cowboys scored their only remaining runs in the sixth inning on Carson McCusker’s two-run double to deep left field. UConn threatened in the seventh, with John Toppa walking and Prado hit by a pitch, but a double play ended the scoring threat. All told, the Huskies left eight men on base.
BULLPEN GAME: Kenny Haus, who pitched an inning against Nebraska on Sunday, earned the start for the Huskies and lasted 2⅓ innings, giving up three hits with three strikeouts over 47 pitches. He was replaced by Wurster, who went two innings and allowed the home run, and by C.J. Dandeneau, who entered in the bottom of the fifth and gave up McCusker’s two-run double. Jacob Wallace, UConn’s vaunted closer, entered with one out in the bottom of the sixth and did not allow a hit while striking out five of the eight batters he faced, but it wasn’t enough.
WHAT DID PENDERS SAY? “I’m really proud of our team. I’m really proud of our fight, our grit and our determination. I told our team in the huddle, there’s not a team that is going to raise that trophy in Omaha that has dealt with more than we’ve dealt with during the course of the season. We’ve slept in our own beds four Friday nights since, I think, Feb. 9 of this year, and so there’s no team playing today in Division I baseball that can say that.”
OUR TAKE: The Huskies (39-25) had high hopes this season, perhaps their highest in many years, and began things in February by taking two of three games in Florida against then-No. 4 Louisville. The AAC schedule proved to be a bit more of a grind than expected, but UConn took care of business in the conference tournament, reaching the final before losing to Cincinnati to claim an at-large NCAA tournament berth.
The Huskies will have a significantly different look and feel next season, not just because they’ll be opening the new Elliot Ballpark across the street from J.O. Christian Field. Outfielders John Toppa and Michael Woodworth, starting right-hander Jeff Kersten and Dandeneau are among the contributors who will graduate, and junior left-hander Mason Feole is likely to leave as an early-round MLB draft pick. UConn could also lose Wallace and Prato, both juniors, if their names are called early enough as well.
It’s another admirable coaching job for Jim Penders, who passed mentor Andy Baylock for the most wins at UConn earlier this season. He’ll always have the deck stacked against him by playing in the Northeast — the Huskies played 21 games before their home opener against Hartford on March 26 — but he has shown time and again he can lure quality talent to Storrs and the team should be a perennial challenger in the conference for many years.
UConn Loses QB, WR To Transfer
The Story: Quarterback Marvin Washington and wide receiver Keyion Dixon both wrote on social media yesterday, the first day of summer classes, that they will transfer from UConn.
WHAT ABOUT QB? Washington, who appeared in three games for the Huskies as a redshirt freshman last season, was one of the top candidates to start this fall and took the majority of snaps this spring. He had been in trouble academically late in the season, with Randy Edsall making the decision to bench him and prevent him from traveling for road games in order to focus on his schoolwork, and Washington said in the spring that he was thankful that had happened.
But, the Huskies brought in two QB transfers that are eligible immediately in Mike Beaudry from West Florida and Micah Leon from N.C. State, and they also have redshirt freshman Steve Krajewski and incoming freshman Jack Zergiotis on the roster this summer. Washington likely noticed the writing on the wall and decided it would be best to look for playing time elsewhere. Krajewski and Beaudry now figure to be the two who will battle to start for UConn in 2019.
DIXON LEAVES WR CORPS: Dixon, from Glastonbury, played in all but one game over the last two seasons after redshirting his first. He had 11 catches for 147 yards and two touchdowns last season and returned 23 kickoffs for 452 yards. He was a Bob Diaco recruit and thanked Diaco on the way out, though he never actually played for him. Projected to be one of the top returning wide receivers this fall, the Huskies have instead now lost six of their top seven receiving targets from last season and will return nobody who caught more than five passes last season who is not a running back.
TRANSFERS PART OF LIFE: UConn has lost eight players to transfer this season and gained six. That’s all a part of the college football landscape these days. The Huskies could have used both players, because, on a 1-11 team, all hands are on deck. That said, it was a 1-11 team and competition is going to fierce, especially at quarterback, when the coach brings in a pair of transfers. The only issue we have is that it was after spring practice, meaning the Huskies went through the entire spring wasting snaps on Washington.
Dimes for Kemba
Morning Read
EYE ON THE PRIZE: Former UConn standout Mike Olt was Jim Penders‘ first first-round draft pick, and after playing for the Texas Rangers, Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox, he’s trying to make his way back to the major leagues by playing in the Atlantic League. (Hearst Connecticut Media)
SCHEDULE UNVEILED: The field hockey team announced its 2019 schedule, with the opener set to take place Aug. 31 against Northwestern and the home opener on Sept. 6 against Rutgers. (UConnHuskies.com)
