They watched the Kentucky Wildcats dogpile on the infield and dump celebratory blue Gatorade on coach Nick Mangione. They watched more than half of the Wildcats do a victory lap around the warning track at Kentucky Proud Park, high-fiving fans as they jogged from right field to left field and back into the infield. And they watched teammates sob and sulk and stew in the first base dugout as they started to process a painful reality:
Oregon State baseball outfielders Gavin Turley and Dallas Macias made a decision to never experience the pain of losing to Kentucky in the Lexington Super Regional, despite having a championship case and dreams of reaching Omaha. “I think it really fuels the fire,” Macias said.
Added Turley: “Last year we came up short at the regional. This year short at the super regional. I feel like going into next year, with another year under our belts with more experience, I really know what I have to do. I know what role I need to fill for next year. I feel like I know myself better as a part of this team and where I have to be at as a part of this team much better going into next year, which will most definitely help in the long run.”
The sophomore outfielders will have the entire offseason to process what went wrong in Lexington. The disastrous seventh inning of Game One. The tiny, backbreaking miscues in Game 2. The inexplicable two-day, team-wide hitting funk. But most of their offseason focus will be on the future and a team that should have enough pieces to make another deep postseason run. The Beavers are expected to lose several important players from a lineup that finished with the most homers (118) and scored the most runs (518) in program history. They will also wave goodbye to two-thirds of the starting rotation, a Stopper of the Year finalist and multiple bullpen arms.
