Missouri Meets Rollins Tonight for NCAA Crown(Columbia Daily Tribune, Monday, June 14, 1954)
OMAHA, June 15 - Missouri will meet little Rollins college at 8 o'clock tonight for the NCAA college world series title after edging Michigan State, 4-3, with a run in a wild ninth inning last night.
Missouri's coach, John (Hi) Simmons, has nominated Sophomore Ed Cook as his mound choice as the Tigers attempt to annex the crown they came so close to winning two years ago.
The Missourians reached the championship game that year, too, only to lose out to Holy Cross, 8-4.
Cook, a lefthander, won his only previous series start, and 8 to 1 victory over Massachusetts, and had a record of three wins and a loss during Missouri's regular season.
Coach Simmons has good reason to place his faith in a first-year man for the crucial game - the Tigers' four series wins have all been posted by sophomores.
Rollins also will counter with a sophomore lefthander, pint-sized Art Brophy, who fanned 12 as he handed the Missourians their only series loss, a 4 to 1 affair in second-round competition.
The tiny Florida college, which has only 300 male students (and, just for the record, 300 co-eds) also has suffered one defeat in tournament play. That was 3-2 at the hands of Michigan State, a team Rollins previously beat 5-4.
Missouri, Big Seven champions, got a big break in last night's win over State when catcher Tom Yewcic, a quarterback for the Spartans in the Rose Bowl last New Years Day, suffered a momentary mental lapse.
Bud Cox of Missouri opened up the last of the ninth by drawing the only walk State sophomore pitcher Ed Hobaugh issued in the game.
Then Lee Wynn, a surprise starter in left field, tried twice to bunt and failed, swung at and fouled a pitch and then swung at a high and wide pitch for the third strike.
The ball got away from Yewcic and Cox raced to second.
Momentarily Yewcic and Wynn stood at the plate. Then Yewcic went after the ball. Wynn, at shouts from the Missouri bench, raced toward first. Yewcic came up with the ball, and confused by Wynn's antics, threw to first. That let Cox travel to third.
Wynn was out without a throw. The rule is that the batter is out when he swings at a ball that escapes the catcher for the third strike with a man on first and less than one out.
That rule was carefully explained to the Spartans, who stormed out of the dugout to add to the confusion, by Hal Dixon, National League umpire who is on duty here.
Next man up was pitcher Emil Kammer, who doubles as an outfielder when not on the mound. Kammer slapped a single into left that scored Cox - probably would have scored the fast runner from second without the gift throw that let him take third.
It was Kammer's second series win as he went the route in both starts.
The Tigers jumped off to a two-run lead in the second frame. Catcher George Gleason singled and First Baseman Bob Schoonmaker doubled him home. Cox followed with the third consecutive hit, a single through the middle, and Schoonmaker scored.
Missouri added its third run the next inning when Third Baseman Todd Sickel doubled down the left field line and Gleason followed suit to left center field.
That ended the Missourians scoring until the ninth. Hobaugh retired the side in order for four frames before allowing an unproductive double by Jerry Schoonmaker in the eighth.
The Spartans roared back in the seventh. Singles by Dan Brown, a pinch hitter, and Yewcic opened the inning and two outs later a single by Pinch Hitter Ron Stead brought them home.
Michigan State tied it up in the eighth as first baseman Chuck Matthews led off with a triple and scored on shortstop Jahn Matsock's long fly ball.
State also threatened in the ninth when third baseman Bill Hoping doubled, but he died on base and the stage was set for Missouri's wild finish.
The victory was the Tigers' 21st of the season - a new Missouri school record, surpassing the 20 wins recorded in 1952. The Missourians have lost only four contests this year compared to seven two years ago.
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