Tar Heels advance to college championship round

OMAHA, Neb. — Jay Cox homered twice and made a great catch in the ninth inning to help North Carolina move to the College World Series championship round with a 6-5 victory over Cal State Fullerton on Wednesday night.

The Tar Heels (53-13) won Bracket 1 and will play Oregon State in the best-of-three final beginning Saturday.

UNC, which defeated Fullerton (50-15) 7-5 on Friday, won a rematch that featured 27 hits in what was an anticipated pitcher's duel between Carolina's Daniel Bard and the Titans' Wes Roemer. Bard (9-3), a first-round draft pick of the Boston Red Sox, gave up a career-high 12 hits in six innings.

Roemer (13-2) allowed six runs on 10 hits in 4 1-3 innings, the shortest of his 30 career starts. The Big West pitcher of the year gave up both of Cox's homers and another by Tim Federowicz.

After allowing three home runs in 16 regular-season starts, Roemer surrendered six in four NCAA tournament starts. He gave up two in his first CWS start against the Tar Heels.

After Cox crashed into the wall in left field when he caught Cooper's fly for the second out, first-round draft pick Andrew Miller came on for his first relief appearance since 2004. Miller earned the save by getting pinch-hitter Bryan Harris on a soft grounder to shortstop for the final out.