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Lawrence Price | casinokrikya.com | March 2, 2026

Six of the biggest storylines from baseball's jam-packed weekend

UCLA remains on top of latest college baseball Power 10 rankings

The third weekend of the 2026 college baseball season is in the books, and it was filled with thrilling matchups, web gems, no-hitters and tear-jerking moments.

Here are some of the biggest takeaways from Friday to Sunday.

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Roch Cholowsky hits clutch homer to lift No. 1 UCLA over No. 4 Mississippi State

The final game of the Amegy Bank College Bank Series Weekend 3 didn’t disappoint, featuring two of the sport’s early-season giants in No. 1 UCLA and No. 4 Mississippi State.

The Bruins won the duel, 8-7, in extras behind a ninth-inning comeback, handing Mississippi State its first loss of the season.

Up 5-3 with two outs in the ninth, Mississippi State was one play away from staying undefeated. Yet, standing in its way was UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky, arguably the best player in the country, who approached the batter’s box for the fourth time that game. 

With one swing of the bat, it was a tie. He blasted a two-run homer to left center on the first pitch. 

Mississippi State was on the verge of walking it off in the bottom half with bases loaded and one out, but Bruins right-hander Easton Hawk worked out of the jam, producing a strikeout and ground to second base, forcing extras.

UCLA’s best inning at the plate came in the 10th, all during pinch hitter Aidan Espinoza’s two-out at-bat. They took the lead on a 1-2 count wild pitch and upped it to 8-5 on Espinoza’s full count double to right center.

Mississippi State didn’t go down quietly with first baseman Reed Stallman’s two-run homer, but couldn’t push another across to end one of the top regular-season matchups of the season yet. 

Clemson’s Michael Sharman tosses 78-pitch complete game in Palmetto Series

Clemson baseball

The Palmetto Series is one of the biggest rivalries in college baseball, no matter then-No. 15 Clemson and South Carolina’s rankings or records — the school pride, smack talk and adrenaline fuel each bout. 

The Tigers won the series, 2-1, against the Gamecocks, and a big thanks goes to left-hander Michael Sharman’s series-saving complete game on Saturday.

And he only needed 78 pitches to do it. 

Clemson lost the series-opener on Friday, putting the series’ fate in the hands of Sharman. The senior diced up South Carolina’s lineup, thumping the zone consistently and throwing between five and 11 pitches each frame. He surrendered just four hits, one run and zero walks in the 4-1 victory. 

The pitching gem made way for Sunday’s rubber match, where the Tigers won, 7-2. 

Radford baseball's walk-off win in honor of late teammate Joey Raccuia

Radford baseball pulled off the most indescribable, supernatural-like comebacks in program history on Friday against Bryant. 

The Highlanders rallied to beat Bryant, 5-4, on a walk-off single two days after teammate and freshman Joey Raccuia tragically passed away due to a car accident.

"(Raccuia) was clearly with us today," head coach Alex Guerra said to Radford Athletics. "There's absolutely no question about it. If you don't believe in a higher power, you'd better start believing after that. It was fate."

Radford had struggled at the plate for the back half of the contest, getting just one hit between the fourth and eighth innings, and striking out three of its last four at-bats entering the ninth. 

All of those troubles washed away in the final frame, capped off by catcher Brady Whitacre’s RBI single up the middle for the winning run.

👉 Click here to read the full recap of Radford baseball's emotional win

High Point’s Lane Allen makes potential catch of the year

High Point right fielder Lane Allen entered his name into the college baseball ‘catch of the year’ conversation on Sunday, robbing a home run in spectacular fashion.

Binghamton center fielder Matt Bolton hammered the first pitch of his at-bat to deep right center. The sophomore gazed at the hard-hit ball, slowly beginning his jog to first base, trying to determine whether it had enough carry to leave Willard Stadium.

That’s when Allen made the leaping grab.

The junior raced back, jumped, made the catch and fell over the shortened right field wall — a height similar to the Boston Red Sox. Getting up quickly, Allen turned around and lifted up his glove with the ball cradled inside it to end the inning. 

Elon baseball and softball pitching staffs score historic weekend

Elon baseball

A no-hitter is hard to come by in baseball, but a no-hitter and perfect game on the same day? Even more uncommon.

Elon baseball and softball accomplished that feat on Saturday, February 28th, all in just five hours. 

Softball right-hander Anna Dew shredded Charleston Southern, etching the program’s fourth-ever perfect game in just six innings. Less than 25 miles East, baseball right-handers Aidan Stieglitz and RJ Latkowski and lefty Mike Staiano combined to throw the team’s first no-hitter since 2017. Stieglitz worked the bull of the labor, going 7.2 innings in first collegiate start.

It is the first time in at least the last three seasons that a DI school pulled off a no-hitter in baseball and softball on the same day.

Southern Cal stays undefeated after 11-inning duel

Southern California remained perfect on the season, just one of three teams nationally, after a battle-tested finale of a four-game series against Cal Poly this weekend. They are two wins away from the program’s best start to a season in the 21st century. 

The Mustangs erased a five-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth, tying it 6-6 and sending the Sunday affair to extra innings. 

Although momentum seemed to be in the palm of Cal Poly’s hand, the Trojans snatched it back in the 11th. They scored on a bases-loaded wild pitch and shortstop Maddox Riske’s two-out RBI double to left center to take an 8-6 lead. 

Southern Cal didn’t allow the Mustangs to recreate their ninth-inning magic, turning a 6-4-3 double play to end the contest. 

in August 2024 as a Digital Editorial Intern. He has held numerous internships in the past few years, including ones at the Kansas City Star, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, TNT Sports and more. Additionally, he was a 2023 Oscar Pope Lift Every Voice Fellowship recipient. Price is a Spring 2024 graduate of Northwestern University with a Bachelor of Science in Journalism. You can follow him on Twitter .

The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NCAA or its member institutions.

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