Michael Lev

Arizona Daily Star

STARKVILLE, Miss. - Hugs upon hugs upon hugs. Screams of joy. Piggyback rides. Selfies. Chants of “Omaha!”

That was the scene that played out in left field late Saturday night at Dudy Noble Field. The underdog Arizona Wildcats had just punched their ticket to the College World Series as only they could.

Freshman catcher Cesar Salazar’s 11th-inning, two-out single drove in Kyle Lewis as Arizona rallied from a late four-run deficit to shock Mississippi State 6-5 and sweep their best-of-three Super Regional.

Jay Johnson was coaching third base when Salazar’s hit bounded through the right side of the infield. The first-year UA coach turned to one of his assistants, Marc Wanaka, who had a look of disbelief on his face.

Did that really just happen?

It did. Afterward, Johnson wasn’t sure how to describe a team that has defied and exceeded expectations.

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BOX SCORE: UA 6, MSU 5 (11 innings)

“I try to pride myself on knowing what to say. Right now, I’m speechless,” Johnson said. “I am so proud of these guys. … I thought I knew what toughness was, competitiveness, heart. And then I met them. Greatest moment of my life.”

Arizona returns to the College World Series for the first time since 2012, when the Wildcats won the tournament. That was also the last time they qualified for the postseason.

They weren’t supposed to make it this year. Pac-12 coaches picked Arizona to finish ninth in the conference.

But as fall turned into winter, and winter into spring, the Wildcats’ belief in themselves grew.

“I try to not put any type of limitations on myself or a group of people that I’m around or this team,” Johnson said. “We had to build some trust, and that was not easy. (Former coach) Andy Lopez is one of the greatest coaches of all time in college baseball.

“We had to set our own course. We did that. It was a little bumpy at first. And we got through it.

“There hasn’t been a challenge along the way that they have not met.”

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Arizona had to win three straight elimination games in a day and a half to win the rain-delayed Lafayette Regional last weekend, including two against host Louisiana-Lafayette. The Wildcats did it.

They had to pull themselves out of a four-run, eighth-inning hole to oust MSU – in front of a partisan crowd of 13,452 – and they did that as well.

The comeback began with senior first baseman Ryan Aguilar’s three-run homer to right field off Ryan Rigby in the bottom of the eighth. It was Aguilar’s team-leading eighth home run of the season, and it changed the mood in the stadium.

“After I hit that, everybody believed more than ever that we could win that game,” Aguilar said. “It gave us that extra boost of confidence we needed to pull that win out.”

Two more singles put the tying run on second base, but hard-throwing Bulldogs reliever Reid Humphreys retired the next three batters, including Salazar on a strikeout.

Senior second baseman Cody Ramer had struck out three times in four hitless at-bats when he led off the bottom of the ninth with a double to left-center. Johnson called that the at-bat of the game.

After Zach Gibbons struck out, freshman left fielder Alfonso Rivas III poked a single into left-center to score Ramer. Arizona loaded the bases, but reliever Blake Smith struck out Bobby Dalbec and retired Salazar on a grounder to short.

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Salazar got another chance against Smith in the 11th, and the Sahuaro High product came through this time. Despite MSU second baseman John Holland playing in shallow right field, Salazar somehow got the ball by him.

First-base coach Sergio Brown pleaded with Salazar to run through the bag. He did. And so began another UA celebration in the Deep South.

“I wasn’t trying to think about my last at-bat,” Salazar said. “I was trying to see a ball that I could hit hard through the infield. I knew he was throwing a lot of sliders. I got my pitch and executed.”

Salazar’s hit was his third of the game and Arizona’s 18th. The Wildcats left 11 runners on base. They had numerous opportunities to score before and after the rally. They never stopped coming.

Senior right-hander Nathan Bannister started for Arizona and pitched well enough – he allowed four runs, three of which were earned, in six-plus innings – for the Wildcats to hang around and keep the Bulldogs and their fans on edge.

When Salazar’s hit trickled through, the game ended and Arizona began celebrating, they fell silent.

“I’m speechless,” said Gibbons, who had four hits. “It’s great that we were able to come back. It just shows that we’re never out of a fight.”