STILLWATER, Okla. – With a trip to the College World Series at stake, Andrew Morales did what he does best.

UC Irvine’s ace, also the St. Louis Cardinals’ No.71 overall pick in the draft last week, threw a complete-game shutout in a 1-0 win against Oklahoma State and helped send the Anteaters to Omaha for the first time since 2007.

The Anteaters beat OSU, 8-4, in Game1 of the series on Friday. With Saturday’s win, the Anteaters extend their unlikely journey to college baseball’s holy ground.

“We’re really proud,” Coach Mike Gillespie said. “We really are.”

The Anteaters (40-23) made easy contact in the first inning, and Jonathan Munoz drove in the game’s first run with a two-out double to left field.

Turns out, that’s all the Anteaters would need.

Oklahoma State (48-18) started Vince Wheeland, typically a reliever, and UCI registered nine hits.

Driving those runners in didn’t come as easily for UCI, but OSU had the same problem. The Cowboys stranded seven runners in the game, and never got a big hit off Morales.

“He really attacked the strike zone,” OSU second baseman Tim Arakawa said. “He was throwing three pitches, all for strikes. You never knew what he was going to throw in any situation.”

Morales threw 112 pitches on the night, allowed five hits and struck out eight.

Chris Rabago, Connor Spencer and Justin Castro each went 2 for 3.

The Anteaters’ trip to Omaha seems unlikely from the outside. UCI lost eight of nine games at one point in May, and third place in the Big West doesn’t exactly ring with hopes for the College World Series.

But in the postseason, UCI regrouped to beat national top seed Oregon State, and the Anteaters kept the momentum rolling this weekend against the Cowboys.

“They got a lot of mojo,” Oklahoma State coach Josh Holliday said. “That’s who they are. It happens every year. There’s a team that finds that connection, they embrace that underdog role.”

Gillespie, though, isn’t all aboard with being the underdog. Despite the late-season slump, Gillespie said he never lost faith in the ability of his team.

“The fact that we’ve done well, it’s not as big a shock as it might look like,” he said. “We’ve pitched well the whole time … our pitching has really given us chances.”

Munoz said he feels the same. Now, the Anteaters get the chance to show the nation what they’re all about.

“We’re sort of the underdog from an outsider’s point of view, but we feel like we match up with anyone,” Munoz said.

UC Irvine opens the CWS against Texas.

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