Ten years ago, long-time Louisville booster Sam Rechter made a trip to recruit Colorado State athletic director Tom Jurich and helped lead him to take over a similar job at the University of Louisville. On Friday (May 8), the day Jurich received an award for National AD of the Year in Orlando, Fla., it was Rechter who sped him back to Louisville just in time to enjoy the final moment of the Cards’ baseball victory over Oklahoma State in their NCAA Super Regional. It's just the latest event in a remarkable series of athletic success stories at U of L since Jurich took over.
“Thank goodness for Sam’s private jet,” said Jurich, who arrived at Louisville’s Jim Patterson Stadium just in time to watch the final out of the Cards’ 9-0 win over No. 20-ranked OSU. “That was the best out I’ve ever seen,” he added (See photo at left).
A record crowd of 4,043 fans likely agreed, because the force play at second that ended the contest set up Saturday’s second game with Oklahoma State (12 noon, ESPN) as Louisville’s most significant baseball game ever - a possible ticket to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. If OSU wins, the two teams would battle for the trip on Sunday (4 p.m., ESPN).
Throughout Jurich’s return flight from Orlando, he, his wife Terrilynn and assistant athletic director and publicist Kenny Klein received repeated updates on the game from the pilots.
First, they heard the Cards had taken a 3-0 first-inning lead on the strength of an RBI double by second baseman Logan Johnson (Owensboro, Ky.) that scored centerfielder Boomer Whiting (New Wilmington, Pa.) from first, followed by a home run to left center by leftfielder Isaiah Howes (Pleasure Ridge Park High School, Louisville).
Later, they were told that catcher Derrick Alfonso (Bowling Green, Ky.) had tripled to the right field corner and scored on a perfect bunt to the right side by 5-foot-3 shortstop Chris Cates (Brandon, Fla.). 
In the fourth inning, third baseman Chris Dominguez (Miami, Fla.), swung and missed badly on the first two pitches of his at-bat, then attacked an outside offering and drove it over the right field fence, raising the Cards lead to 5-0.
In the sixth, designated hitter Jorge Castillo (Miami, Fla.) singled to left, then jogged to the plate two batters later on a crushing homer to left center by right fielder Pete Rodriguez (Miami, Fla.) that gave U of L a commanding 7-0 margin.
Finally, U of L added a pair of runs in the ninth inning as Cates singled to right, advanced to second on a fielder’s choice and scored on first baseman Daniel Burton’s (New Albany, Ind.) single to right. Later, Whiting, who had reached base on a fielder’s choice, scored on a single to right center by pinch-hitter Justin McClanahan (Annapolis, Md.).
In all, Louisville out-hit OSU 13-6 as the Cards’ right-handed starting pitcher Zack Pitts (Elizabethtown, Ky.) dominated the Cowboys for seven innings, striking out six, before turning over the mound to lefty reliever Gavin Logsdon (Caneyville, Ky.) who completed the shutout.
“We’re in a very different position than we were a week ago,” said first-year U of L head coach Dan McDonnell. The Cards weren’t sure they’d even receive an NCAA bid when they came up short in the Big East Tournament. Then, they defeated Miami, Fla. (twice) and host Missouri (once), setting up a Super Regional that U of L was selected to host.
“In our first game with Oklahoma State, we played like we were enjoying the moment,” said McDonnell. “We threw strikes, made the routine plays and got some big hits, which is what you have to do this time of year.”
If Louisville duplicates that effort against the Cowboys once more this weekend, Jurich won’t be the only one flying high. He would be joined by McDonnell’s squad and thousands of Cardinal fans who are suddenly eager to reach for college baseball’s top prize.
NOTE: Daily columnist Ron Steiner also appears on the Red & Blue Review, a weekly statewide TV sports show (Insight Ch. 2), is published weekly in the Voice-Tribune and is a guest each Friday (5:45 p.m.) on the Cardinal Insider radio program (KRDS, 790AM). He can be reached by e-mail at r.steiner@insightbb.com.
