Well I could not have been more wrong, nor could I be any happier about it.
Big East Pitcher of the Year Zack Pitts shut down the lethal Oklahoma State offense, and the Cardinal offense provided more than enough fire power to get the job done on the other end as the Cards trounced the Cowboys 9-0 in game one of the best-of-three Super Regional.
Pitts (10-3) allowed just four hits over seven innings, and sophoore Gavin Logsdon pitched two scoreless innings as Louisville became just the second team to shutout Oklahoma State all season.
U of L got all the offense it would need two batters into the game, as Boomer Whiting led off with an infield single and then was doubled home moments later by Logan Johnson. Johnson would also score two batters later when cleanup Isaiah Howes belted a two-run bomb to make it 3-0.
Chris Dominguez stayed hot, muscleing a solo home run over the right field fence in the fourth inning to make the score 5-0, and right fielder Pete Rodriguez crushed U of L's third homer of the day in the seventh to make it 7-0.
"It was a great day for Louisville baseball," said Louisville Coach Dan McDonnell. "We were relaxed and ready to enjoy the atmosphere. We did just about everything we needed to. Zack was phenomenal on the mound, and offensively we put pressure on them every inning."
I was really afraid that the Cards would come out tight because of the out of the ordinary circumstances of the game, but my fears were alleviated beyond my wildest imagination. This is an awfully good baseball team, and with one more win the entire college baseball world will be forced to take notice.