WATCH: Sonny DiChiara confident about Auburn's chances to reach CWS Finals
Auburn star Sonny DiChiara spoke after their win over Stanford to avoid elimination about their confidence as a team in the CWS. DiChiara had a rough day at the plate individually, but the Tigers won a tough 6-2 victory over the Cardinals as they eliminated the No. 2 seed in the tournament.
Sonny DiChiara on advancing in the CWS
“I think it means everything. Just being able to get that first one out of the way. I think it’s been since the 1998 or whatever that was since they last won at Omaha. And so just to get that first one out of the way is huge.”
The win was indeed the Tigers first win at the CWS since 1997 (not 1998), and now Auburn will play the loser of Monday’s game between Ole Miss and Arkansas for another elimination game.
In the sixth inning of the game, Auburn got their biggest hit of the day from Cole Foster as he hit a double that cleared the bases.
“We just got the bases loaded and we were finally able to capitalize on it with Cole coming up, hitting that double,” explained DiChiara. “That kinda opened back up our spirits, like ‘hey we got this, we can still hit and we’re still here.’
“Trace got us off to a nice start. Tommy came in and threw just even better. And then Burkhalter came in and slammed the door. It was very encouraging.”
DiChiara closed his interview by explaining what the win meant for Auburn and what kind of message they want to give the rest of the field still playing at Omaha. It could double as a warning depending on your perspective; either way, Auburn is confident.
“That we’re just as good as anybody and we can hang with anybody.”