Ethan Walker may not have been the guy Kentucky wanted pitching on Saturday in an elimination game, but his talented left arm kept the Wildcats’ season alive.
The junior left-hander from Virginia turned in his best outing of the season, tossing five innings of one-hit, shutout relief to help UK stave off elimination in the NCAA Tournament Clemson Regional with a 7-3 win over USC Upstate.
Walker, who entered a 3-3 game in relief of starter Nic McCay in the fifth inning, allowed only a two-out single in the ninth while striking out seven and issuing no walks.
"I want to brag about Ethan," Kentucky head coach Nick Mingione said. "For those of you who maybe haven't followed us all season, Ethan started out in our rotation and was pitching on weekends... Long story short, Ethan moves to the bullpen, and never one time did this guy ever whine, complain, or make excuses. Never showed any frustration. All he wanted to do, and his message to the coaching staff was, I'll do whatever it takes to help the team win.
"For him to be able to do this in that moment, none of us were surprised because of his heart."
Walker (2-1) matched a season-high for innings pitched and established a new season-high for strikeouts. He had been rumored to be a potential starter if UK advanced beyond Saturday, but a do-or-die situation beckoned.
"Just confidence in my pitching coach and my defense behind me," a humble Walker said.
His huge effort helped 3-seed Kentucky advance to Sunday's elimination round. The Cats will have to win two games against 2-seed West Virginia and top-seeded Clemson in order to advance to a potential Monday championship game.
Kentucky (30-25) jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning on a three-run homer to left field by junior outfielder Carson Hansen.
The Spartans came back with three runs in the fourth inning to tie the game and chase McCay from the game after a long, laboring frame on the mound.
The Cats took a 4-3 lead in the sixth inning after James McCoy walked, stole second, and advanced to third on a wild pitch. He scored on an RBI squeeze bunt by Patrick Herrera.
Walker locked it down from that point, retiring nine of the last 11 batters he faced.
Kentucky got its pitcher some insurance runs in the eighth inning on an RBI single by senior Cole Hage and a two-out, two-run single by freshman Hunter Brown. Junior second baseman Luke Lawrence, who led the Cats with a 3-for-4 day at the plate, got the rally started with a leadoff single.
"I was really proud of Huddy right there," Mingione said of Brown, who had arguably his biggest hit of the season. "... I think it took the wind out of them."
Darin Kuskie (5-2) took the loss for Upstate out of the bullpen. He allowed three runs on one hit and three walks in two innings of relief of starter Chris Torres, who allowed three runs on five hits and two walks in five solid innings on the mound.
The Spartans saw their season end at 36-25.
Kentucky played its first game of the season without standout freshman shortstop Tyler Bell, who fouled a ball off his knee during Friday's opening game. Mingione said he was available to pinch-hit on Saturday, but they were not going to risk further injury. His status remains uncertain for Sunday.
