Completed Event: Baseball versus (2) Georgia Tech on May 31, 2026 , Win , 15, to, 8
Final
Baseball
15
vs (2) Georgia Tech
8
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University of Oklahoma Athletics
Monday, June 22
Omaha, Neb.
6 p.m. CT
University of Oklahoma
43-23
13
vs
2
North Carolina
54-14-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 13 | 14 | 1 |
| North Carolina | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 1 |
Photo by: Oklahoma Athletics
Sooner Magic: OU Wins National Championship
June 22, 2026 | Baseball
OMAHA, Neb. – Oklahoma Baseball (43-23) completed one of the most remarkable postseason runs in college baseball, capturing its third national title with a resounding 13-2 victory against No. 5 North Carolina (54-14-1) in a winner-take-all College World Series championship game before a crowd of 23,248 Monday night at Charles Schwab Field.
Playing in their 12th CWS and making their fourth championship appearance, the Sooners add to previous national titles won in 1951 and 1994.
Sophomore second baseman Kyle Branch and junior shortstop Jaxon Willits led the way by going 3-for-4 at the plate respectively.
Branch had a career-high six RBIs, punctuated with a three-run homer to left field in his final at-bat. Named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, Willits had two RBIs and reached base five times while finishing with a school record 13 hits in the CWS.
Senior first baseman Dayton Tockey, junior designated hitter Brendan Brock and junior right fielder Dasan Harris added two hits each to the Sooners' 14-hit attack.
"Kyle and Jaxon were incredible," said OU coach Skip Johnson, who is now 8-3 in two CWS appearances, the other coming in 2022. "We took the momentum over early, and we made some great plays defensively and got some big hits. These guys were separating balls from strikes, staying in their routines, the thing we talk about, pitch to pitch, and getting some big hits."
Junior righthander LJ Mercurius (7-7) came on in relief with one out in the third inning and earned the victory by scattering four hits, allowing one run and striking out five in 5.2 innings on 79 pitches.
"I think when I was coming into the game, the mindset was always the same," Mercurius said. "Take my deep breath, finish my breath and just execute a pitch. And I knew if I did that, we'll be able to get out of the inning. But really, I think the biggest thing coming out of that bullpen is Skip's a genius. I listen to Skip and whatever Skip says, I'm going to do. Simple as that. … When I started to appreciate it and really settle into listening and taking that breath, my game changed, and it shows. So I think whatever Skip says, you better frickin' listen, yeah."
The Sooners started the season hot and finished even hotter while eliminating the nation's elite.
"I think we knew that the talent was always in the room," Willits said. "And that's something that Skip and all the coaches preached to us from day one in the fall, is that this group of guys is special. Whether we were playing well or not, we believed that we had the talent in the room to go out and win a national championship."
On championship night OU spread its offense across 11 singles, one double and two homers.
With the game well in hand, Branch hit a home run in his final at-bat of the season just as his older brother, Georgia shortstop Kolby, did in his final at-bat in an 11-4 loss to OU on Wednesday.
Rewinding to the opening pitch, Wesloski made just his third start of the season Monday, all coming in the NCAA Tournament. He went 2.1 innings, allowing five hits and one run before giving way to Mercurius with OU leading 3-1.
The Sooners jumped on UNC lefty starter Jackson Rose for five hits in the first two innings.
Branch had an RBI single to right for his second hit of the CWS, knocking in Harris for a 1-0 lead in the second. Tockey reached on a single to center and pushed the lead to 2-0 by scoring on a wild pitch.
The OU defense came up massive in the bottom of the inning, keeping the momentum with the Sooners. With runners at first and second, Rom Kelis flared a base hit to right but Harris rifled a throw to third base to get Carter French out at third base before lead runner Erik Paulsen could score.
Brock gave OU a 3-0 lead in the third with a line-drive single to center off heralded reliever Walker McDuffie to score Willits, who had doubled to the left-field corner.
McDuffie was pulled with one out in the fourth inning and replaced by ACC Freshman of the Year Caden Glauber. The Tar Heels were 29-0 in games Glauber pitched – until Monday night.
Willits rapped his third hit of the game with a line drive to right against Glauber that scored Walk and Camden Johnson to give the Sooners a 6-1 lead.
Tockey's solo shot over the right-field wall in the fifth inning left had an exit velocity of 110.2 mph to make the score 7-1. It was Tockey's sixth homer in the postseason after hitting three during the regular season.
UNC showed some life in the seventh, churning out one run in the seventh but Mercurius stranded two to end the threat.
The Sooners delivered the final blow in the eighth, scoring four runs on two hits, the biggest being Branch's three-run homer on a 3-2 offering. Harris also singled in another in the session to complete the scoring.
Jackson Cleveland spun the final inning for Oklahoma, striking out the side.
Pitchers of Record
Win: LJ Mercurius (7-7)
Loss: Jackson Rose (5-1)
College World Series All-Tournament Team (Oklahoma Players)
Statistical Snapshot
Notes
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Gates Open: 5:30 p.m.
Location: Kimrey Family Stadium
Limited Concessions: $2 beer, hot dogs, popcorn, sodas and water
OU Baseball National Championship Merchandise for Sale
Post program autographs with the team
Clear bag policy in effect
Playing in their 12th CWS and making their fourth championship appearance, the Sooners add to previous national titles won in 1951 and 1994.
Sophomore second baseman Kyle Branch and junior shortstop Jaxon Willits led the way by going 3-for-4 at the plate respectively.
Branch had a career-high six RBIs, punctuated with a three-run homer to left field in his final at-bat. Named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player, Willits had two RBIs and reached base five times while finishing with a school record 13 hits in the CWS.
Senior first baseman Dayton Tockey, junior designated hitter Brendan Brock and junior right fielder Dasan Harris added two hits each to the Sooners' 14-hit attack.
"Kyle and Jaxon were incredible," said OU coach Skip Johnson, who is now 8-3 in two CWS appearances, the other coming in 2022. "We took the momentum over early, and we made some great plays defensively and got some big hits. These guys were separating balls from strikes, staying in their routines, the thing we talk about, pitch to pitch, and getting some big hits."
Junior righthander LJ Mercurius (7-7) came on in relief with one out in the third inning and earned the victory by scattering four hits, allowing one run and striking out five in 5.2 innings on 79 pitches.
"I think when I was coming into the game, the mindset was always the same," Mercurius said. "Take my deep breath, finish my breath and just execute a pitch. And I knew if I did that, we'll be able to get out of the inning. But really, I think the biggest thing coming out of that bullpen is Skip's a genius. I listen to Skip and whatever Skip says, I'm going to do. Simple as that. … When I started to appreciate it and really settle into listening and taking that breath, my game changed, and it shows. So I think whatever Skip says, you better frickin' listen, yeah."
The Sooners started the season hot and finished even hotter while eliminating the nation's elite.
"I think we knew that the talent was always in the room," Willits said. "And that's something that Skip and all the coaches preached to us from day one in the fall, is that this group of guys is special. Whether we were playing well or not, we believed that we had the talent in the room to go out and win a national championship."
On championship night OU spread its offense across 11 singles, one double and two homers.
With the game well in hand, Branch hit a home run in his final at-bat of the season just as his older brother, Georgia shortstop Kolby, did in his final at-bat in an 11-4 loss to OU on Wednesday.
Rewinding to the opening pitch, Wesloski made just his third start of the season Monday, all coming in the NCAA Tournament. He went 2.1 innings, allowing five hits and one run before giving way to Mercurius with OU leading 3-1.
The Sooners jumped on UNC lefty starter Jackson Rose for five hits in the first two innings.
Branch had an RBI single to right for his second hit of the CWS, knocking in Harris for a 1-0 lead in the second. Tockey reached on a single to center and pushed the lead to 2-0 by scoring on a wild pitch.
The OU defense came up massive in the bottom of the inning, keeping the momentum with the Sooners. With runners at first and second, Rom Kelis flared a base hit to right but Harris rifled a throw to third base to get Carter French out at third base before lead runner Erik Paulsen could score.
Brock gave OU a 3-0 lead in the third with a line-drive single to center off heralded reliever Walker McDuffie to score Willits, who had doubled to the left-field corner.
McDuffie was pulled with one out in the fourth inning and replaced by ACC Freshman of the Year Caden Glauber. The Tar Heels were 29-0 in games Glauber pitched – until Monday night.
Willits rapped his third hit of the game with a line drive to right against Glauber that scored Walk and Camden Johnson to give the Sooners a 6-1 lead.
Tockey's solo shot over the right-field wall in the fifth inning left had an exit velocity of 110.2 mph to make the score 7-1. It was Tockey's sixth homer in the postseason after hitting three during the regular season.
UNC showed some life in the seventh, churning out one run in the seventh but Mercurius stranded two to end the threat.
The Sooners delivered the final blow in the eighth, scoring four runs on two hits, the biggest being Branch's three-run homer on a 3-2 offering. Harris also singled in another in the session to complete the scoring.
Jackson Cleveland spun the final inning for Oklahoma, striking out the side.
Pitchers of Record
Win: LJ Mercurius (7-7)
Loss: Jackson Rose (5-1)
College World Series All-Tournament Team (Oklahoma Players)
- Jaxon Willits – Most Outstanding Player
- Deiten Lachance
- Jason Walk
- Dasan Harris
Statistical Snapshot
- Kyle Branch | 3-for-4, HR, 6 RBI
- Jaxon Willits | 3-for-4, 2B, 2 BB 2 RBI
- Dayton Tockey | 2-for-5, HR
- Brendan Brock | 2-for-3, 2 BB, RBI
- Dasan Harris | 2-for-5, RBI
- Nick Wesloski | 2.1 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K
- LJ Mercurius | 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K
- Jackson Cleveland | 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Notes
- Oklahoma won the program's third national championship (also won in 1951 and 1994).
- Oklahoma made its fourth appearance in the College World Series finals and second in the era of three-game series. OU is now 4-3 in CWS finals games and has won the national title in three of its four CWS finals appearances.
- The Sooners finished the season with a 43-23 record.
- Junior Jaxon Willits was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2026 NCAA Men's College World Series. In six games, Willits batted .500 (13 of 26) with seven RBI, five doubles, a home run, two walks and six runs scored.
- In the NCAA Tournament, Oklahoma defeated the No. 2 (Georgia Tech, twice), No. 3 (Georgia, twice), No. 5 (North Carolina, twice), No. 7 (Alabama) and No. 15 (Kansas, twice) national seeds.
- This was the eighth all-time meeting between Oklahoma and North Carolina. The Sooners lead the series 5-3. All eight meetings have come in the postseason (prior to this CWS finals matchup, OU won twice in the 2010 Norman Regional and UNC won two of three games in the 2025 Chapel Hill Regional).
- Oklahoma hit two home runs Monday night and hit at least one home run in 12 of its final 13 games of the season (multiple home runs in 10 of those games). OU hit 47 home runs in its final 19 games, dating back to May 9 at Arkansas, after hitting 48 homers in its first 46 games.
- Oklahoma's 95 home runs this season were its most since hitting 105 in 2010.
- Oklahoma pitchers totaled 11 strikeouts tonight. The Sooners recorded double-digit strikeouts in five of six CWS games and in all three finals contests.
- OU batters drew eight walks Monday, the most in a game since May 31 in the Atlanta Regional vs. The Citadel.
- Oklahoma drew five walks during its three-run fourth inning. The Sooners drew 10 walks in their first five CWS games entering Monday.
- Oklahoma scored first in nine straight games to end the season, dating back to the Atlanta Regional final at Georgia Tech on June 1. The Sooners scored two runs in the top of the second inning today.
- Sophomore Kyle Branch drove in the first run of the game with an RBI single through the right side of the infield in the second inning. It was his second hit of the CWS finals (both of his hits in the College World Series were in the finals).
- Branch had three hits in the game, including a two-run single in the sixth inning and a three-run home run in the eighth inning (fourth homer of the season). He finished with a career-high six RBI (previous high was three RBI).
- Branch posted his eighth multi-RBI game of the season and just his second with at least three RBI.
- All four of Branch's hits in the College World Series produced runs (all four hits came in the finals).
- With three hits tonight, Jaxon Willits recorded 13 hits in the CWS, which is the most hits by an Oklahoma player in the College World Series. He had nine hits through OU's first four games, tying the mark set by Rick Gutierrez in 1994 (also in four games) and surpassed it with a double in Game 2 on Sunday.
- Willits recorded multiple hits in five of six CWS games. This was his third game with at least three hits in the NCAA Tournament.
- Senior Dayton Tockey hit his ninth home run of the season to lead off the fifth inning. It was his sixth homer in the NCAA Tournament and first in the CWS.
- Junior Deiten Lachance walked to drive in a run during OU's three-run fourth inning. He recorded at least one RBI in eight of 13 NCAA Tournament games.
- True freshman Nick Wesloski made his second College World Series start, marking the sixth CWS game and eighth straight contest in which the Sooners have started a true freshman on the mound. He pitched 2.1 innings and struck out three batters and allowed a run on five hits.
- Junior LJ Mercurius (7-7) earned the win in relief, pitching 5.2 innings with five strikeouts and allowing one run on three hits and no walks.
- At least one Mercurius brother (LJ and Xander) appeared on the mound in all six of OU's CWS games.
- Senior Jackson Cleveland closed the game in the ninth inning. He allowed a leadoff single, then struck out three straight batters, the last two looking.
- Since trailing 8-2 in the fourth inning of the first Atlanta Regional final game at Georgia Tech, OU outscored opponents 90-28.
- OU scored 118 runs on 156 hits in its 13 NCAA Tournament games.
- Walk extended his team-leading hitting streak to 15 games. Walk reached base in 23 straight games to end the season and Jaxon Willits finished with a 19-game reached base streak.
National Championship Celebration
Date: Wednesday, June 24Time: 6:30 p.m.
Gates Open: 5:30 p.m.
Location: Kimrey Family Stadium
Limited Concessions: $2 beer, hot dogs, popcorn, sodas and water
OU Baseball National Championship Merchandise for Sale
Post program autographs with the team
Clear bag policy in effect
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Mercurius, LJ (7-7)
L: Jackson Rose (5-1)
Batting:
2B: Willits, Jaxon 1
HR: Tockey, Dayton 1 ; Branch, Kyle 1
RBI: Lachance, Deiten 1 ; Willits, Jaxon 2 ; Brock, Brendan 1 ; Harris, Dasan 1 ; Tockey, Dayton 1 ; Branch, Kyle 6
Base Running:
RUNS: Walk, Jason 1 ; Johnson, Camden 1 ; Willits, Jaxon 2 ; Gambill, Trey 1 ; Brock, Brendan 2 ; Harris, Dasan 2 ; Tockey, Dayton 2 ; Branch, Kyle 2
HBP: Johnson, Camden 1
Batting:
RBI: Owen Hull 1 ; Gavin Gallaher 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Jake Schaffner 1 ; Jadyn Nunez 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
3
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
3
RBI
6
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
AB
5
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
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/ BaseballMonday, June 22
Monday, June 22
Monday, June 22
Sunday, June 21
