Array
I haven’t kept up with the College World Series games like I planned to, and I missed one heck of a historic game on Monday. As soon as my editing shift ended and my phone came off Do Not Disturb, I saw a slew of notifications from ESPN about the game between Arkansas and Murray State. ESPN has adopted Murray State as one of its favorites this College World Series and slapped the small school with the C-word: Cinderella.
Side note: If you elect me as president, I’ll sign an executive order on day one banning sports media from using the word “Cinderella” in its coverage of sporting events. It’s the hoariest of sports cliches.
The notifications said things like “Is a no-hitter brewing in Omaha?” And “NO-HITTER ALERT!” Of course, all superstitious baseball fans know that you don’t talk about a no-hitter because you might jinx it. Then again, ESPN had adopted Murray State as a favorite, so it was probably trying to jinx Arkansas’ starting pitcher Gage Wood.
But Wood pulled it off. He pitched the first no-hitter in the College World Series since 1960 and the third of all time. To top it all off, Wood threw an astonishing 19 strikeouts, which set a new College World Series record, and had he not hit one Murray State batter with a pitch in the ninth inning, he would have achieved a perfect game.
Serious question, no hyperbole. Given the stakes:
Gage Wood throwing a 19-strikeout no-hitter, in a game where his team’s season was on the line, has to be one of the greatest pitching performances -regardless of level – in baseball history, right?pic.twitter.com/58Dkpz5p5n— Aaron Torres (@Aaron_Torres) June 16, 2025
When ESPN’s reporter asked Wood about his performance in the game, Wood said, “I shouldn’t have hit the guy.”
Even though ESPN didn’t mind promoting the potential no-hitter, the Arkansas dugout kept the superstition going. ESPN reports:
Catcher Ryder Helfrick had a feeling something special was brewing by the fourth inning, but he kept quiet.
