Wake Forest changes 'vibe,' tops Stanford in opener at MCWS - ESPN

OMAHA, Neb. — Danny Corona hit a go-ahead two-run single in the eighth inning to roust a dormant Wake Forest offense, and the Demon Deacons opened their first College World Series in 68 years with a 3-2 win over Stanford on Saturday.

The No. 1 national seed Deacons were held to three hits and one run before storms in the area caused a 1-hour, 28-minute delay in the seventh inning.

When play resumed, the Deacons were able to squeeze out enough production to win their first game in Omaha since they won the national championship here in 1955.

«We call ourselves the king of delay,» Brock Wilken said. «Every time we have a delay we come out with so much energy, and our vibe is immediately switched.»

Wake Forest turned a double play to end the game, prompting closer Camden Minacci to pump both of his fists and do a little dance in front of the mound while infielders did jumping chest bumps.

The Deacons (53-10) will play Monday against the winner of the Saturday night game between LSU and Tennessee. Stanford (44-19) plays the loser Monday.

Seth Keener (8-1), the third of four Wake Forest pitchers, struck out four of the five batters he faced and earned the win.

For four innings, Stanford starter Joey Dixon held down an offense that outscored its first five NCAA tournament opponents 75-16 — the biggest run differential ever for a team heading into a CWS — and averaged 9.4 runs per game for the season.

Dixon, who gave up a homer to Brock Wilken and two singles, got out of a bases-loaded situation before he turned the game over to Drew Dowd at the start of the fifth. Dowd retired all six batters he faced, but he didn't come back out after the delay.

«I felt we were tight early and nervous and kind of got out of our plan