By DOUG ALDEN
AP Sports Writer
OMAHA, NE (AP) — J.D. Reininger drove in four runs —
two on a fourth-inning homer — and Texas held off Stanford 8-7 on
Monday night in a winners' bracket game at the College World Series.
Jeff Ontiveros also homered and Tim Moss scored three
runs for the Longhorns (55-15).
Texas, which is in the CWS for the 29th time and has
won four national titles, can advance to Saturday's championship game
with one more win. The Longhorns will play again Thursday against
either Stanford or Notre Dame, which play in an elimination game
Tuesday night.
Alan Bomer (11-3) went six innings and allowed four
runs and six hits. The Iowa State transfer, who went to Texas after
the Cyclones dropped their program last spring, left to a loud round
of applause from the Longhorns fans.
Huston Street pitched the final two innings and picked
up his second save of the CWS and 12th this season.
Chris O'Riordan and Ryan Garko each drove in two runs
for the Cardinal (46-17), who got within one run on Sam Fuld's RBI
single with two outs in the ninth, but Street struck out Garko on a
checked swing to end the game.
Stanford starter Tim Cunningham (10-3) lasted just 3
2-3 innings, allowing seven runs and five hits.
Ontiveros hit a solo homer in the third to give Texas
a 3-0 lead. After Stanford cut it to 3-2 in the fourth, the Longhorns
scored four in the bottom of the inning.
Texas got two runs after two walks, a single and a
throwing error by Fuld. Then, with one runner on, Reininger hit a line
drive that hit the top of the right-field wall and was ruled a home
run.
After falling behind 7-2, Stanford got two in the
sixth on sacrifice flies by Jason Cooper and O'Riordan and two more in
the seventh on a single by Garko that made it 8-6.
Cunningham struggled right away against the Longhorns.
Moss lined Cunningham's second pitch to center, Omar Quintanilla
walked and Reininger drove in Moss with a single. Cunningham hit
Ontiveros to load the bases and Quintanilla scored on a fielder's
choice.