Beavers rally to beat Cal State Fullerton

OMAHA, NEB. » Adley Rutschman hit the tie-breaking single in the eighth inning, Jake Mulholland pitched 4.1 innings of no-hit relief and Oregon State rallied to beat Cal State Fullerton 6-5 in the College World Series opener on Saturday.

The Beavers (55-4) extended their winning streak to 22 games after falling behind by four runs as national wins leader Jake Thompson scuffled.

Mulholland (7-1) settled things down for the Beavers, retiring 12 of the 13 batters after taking over for Thompson, who came into the game with 14 wins but lasted 3.2 innings in his shortest outing of the season.

Timmy Richards’ three-run homer in the first and Chris Hudgins’ two-run single in the fourth gave the Titans (39-23) a 5-1 lead, the largest deficit the Beavers have faced since losing 7-1 to UCLA in April.

Fullerton starter Connor Seabold, the Phillies’ third-round pick in this week’s draft, worked a strong five innings, but his pitch count ballooned to 97 and he was relieved by Colton Eastman to start the sixth.