A simple Google search will show that the Titans made their 17th appearance at College World Series in 2015 in Omaha. What that Google search won't tell you is that if not for an epic marathon win at the Fullerton Regional, that trip to Omaha might not have happened.
After finishing the regular season at 34-22, the Titans were selected as a Regional host, and the number one seed in their Regional. After easily handling Pepperdine 9-3 in the opener, the Titans were faced with 21st ranked Arizona State, the #2 Regional seed, in the May 30, 2015 evening finale at Goodwin Field. By virtue of a coin toss, the Titans were the designated home team.
It all started innocently enough, with a crowd of 2,997 settling down for the 8:35 p.m. start. Titan ace and Louisville Slugger All-American Thomas Eshelman took to the hill to face the Sun Devils.
ASU scored runs in the first and second innings, while the Titans initially got on the board in the second inning when Timmy Richards knocked in Tanner Pinkston with a single to left field. The Titans tied the score 2-2 in the sixth inning when David Olmedo-Barrera singled to score Taylor Bryant.
This is when the battle became engaged. Eshelman and the Titans refused to yield. As head coach Rick Vanderhook put it, "He (Eshelman) had a couple times out there where he showed emotion after locking guys up."
Eshelman would pitch a masterful nine innings, scattering seven hits, and striking out 14 Sun Devil batters. "Esh" would deliver an incredible 143 pitches, while walking none. You read that right. No walked batters.
As the Titans headed to the top of the 10th inning, Eshelman had done all that he could. Someone had to come in from the bullpen and continue to hold off ASU until the home team Titans could manufacture at least one run in the bottom of an inning.
That Fullerton reliever was also a Louisville Slugger All-American, Tyler Peitzmeier. "Peitz" more than delivered, holding the Sun Devils scoreless for five full innings, while striking out six.
After missed opportunities, and great defensive plays by both sides, the chill of the marine layer began to settle on Goodwin Field, while the tension rose with each extra inning.
It was in the wee hours of the morning when the bottom of the 14th inning arrived. The PA announcer that night, Trevor Rabone, remembers it this way: "We gave out Klondike bars during the 14th inning stretch. We were all exhausted in the press box, but it was one of the more electric atmospheres that I can remember, with everyone hanging on every pitch. I think it was because you just had a feeling that the later it went, whichever team lost that game would be in big trouble for the elimination game (scheduled in the early afternoon).
Titan freshman Chris Hudgins started off the 14th inning rally by being plunked by a pitch on a 3-0 count. Taylor Bryant dropped a sacrifice bunt to move Hudgins to second base. ASU intentionally walked Josh Vargas, who eventually replaced Hudgins on second after a fielder's choice put Tyler Stieb on first base. Designated Hitter David Olmedo-Barrera was walked to load the Titan bases with two outs. ASU pitching was again dramatically wild as third baseman Jerrod Bravo became the hero of the night (or should I say early morning?), collecting his third walk of the evening. This one scoring Josh Vargas from third. And as they say, the crowd went wild. It was 1:47 in the morning of May 31st. The game had gone on for five hours and 12 minutes. Just two Titan pitchers had thrown 215 total pitches, striking out 20 ASU batters in 14 innings.
Long-time Titan fan and booster, Don Hudson had this to say about the end of the contest: "Even though I didn't leave the field until close to 2:30 a.m., I was too wired to sleep. I headed straight to Norms "We Never Close" for steak and eggs. You know you're jacked up when you power slam coffee at 3:00 in the morning to settle your nerves so that you can sleep.
"It was a sweet feeling knowing that ASU would need to get up early and try to figure out how to cobble together enough pitching to win three straight games, while the Titans could sit back and wait for the Sunday night game against a fatigued pitching staff, regardless of which team we faced."
Eshelman would later say: "When I first came out of the game, I was a little exhausted, mentally and physically. It was a fun game to be a part of, going back and forth with them." He further added, "It was a good team win and we did a heckuva job tonight."
Head coach Rick Vanderhook, in typical "Hooky" humor would sum up the game: "I think we got lucky tonight, and I like luck a lot."
Vanderhook would prophetically state this about Eshelman, "He is one of the best pitchers in the history of this program… he'll pitch in the big leagues for a long time." Thomas Eshelman would become the 67th Titan to play in the Major Leagues when he took to the mound for the Baltimore Orioles in 2019.
Fullerton would springboard from their win over ASU to once again dominate Pepperdine 10-1 in the Regional final that night. The Titans would go on the road to defeat Louisville in a similarly epic three-game Super Regional en route to Omaha. But that… is another story.