Oppressive heat and a few first time teams both played a role in attendance being down at the College World Series.
“But the good news is with this 17th game tonight, which is history making, we really hope we can make that up,” said Kathryn Morrissey.
Kathryn Morrissey, the Executive Director of the College World Series of Omaha Inc. says this year’s 17 games are the most played in CWS history since 2003 when the NCAA switched the finals formal to the best two out of three games.
A few less fans, but a lot more baseball. Businesses like The Blatt across from the ballpark are loving the increase in games.
“It definitely feels busier. It definitely feels like we’ve been busier compared to years past. We obviously were rooting for a game three,” said a manager at The Blatt.
On Tuesday, Coastal Carolina’s 5-4 win over Arizona kept baseball alive for another day downtown.
“I need heart medicine, this is unbelievable,” said former Coastal Carolina player Randy McGarvey.
No one may have been more excited for baseball to continue than the Coastal Carolina fans.
“They scrap, they work hard and they do what they have to do to get it done,” said former player Aaron Mayhew.
It’s not only the first time at the CWS for Coastal Carolina, but a win Wednesday would be the school’s first national championship.
“There are no words that can explain this, I get goose bumps just thinking about it,”said McGarvey.
More than a dozen former Coastal Carolina players like Randy McGarvey and Aaron Mayhew made the trip to Omaha for a chance to potentially witness history be made.
“We’ve been a great program for a very long time, but a lot of people have never heard of Coastal Carolina. They don’t know where we are, but they will definitely know now,” said McGarvey.
If Coastal Carolina wins on Wednesday, Coach Gary Gilbert will collect his 1100th win.
