OMAHA, NE — Freshman pitcher shutting down maybe the nation’s most potent lineup? Check.Home runs by the record-setting handful? Check.Otherworldly defensive genius with the leather? Check.Oklahoma’s unlikely run at the College World Series continued on Wednesday night at Charles Schwab Field as the Sooners emphatically eliminated No. 3 national seed Georgia 11-4.OU (41-22) hit five home runs, got another startlingly precocious performance on the hill and layered in plenty of fabulous defense to shut down the Bulldogs (53-14) and advance to the CWS Championship Series for the second time in a five-year stretch. Oklahoma will play North Carolina (53-12-1) starting Saturday.OU won its sixth game in a row when scoring first (they led 1-0 in the third and 4-0 in the fourth) — and barely gave the crowd of 24,446 time to catch their breath before another Sooner smacked a ball over the fence. In their last meeting — Monday’s second-round game — the Sooners got stellar pitching from starter Xander Mercurius, home runs from Jaxon Willits and Brendan Brock, three elite defensive plays on the infield and a tense save from Jackson Cleveland in a 4-3 Sooner victory.Georgia came into that game on a nine-game winning streak. They’ll leave Omaha with a two-game losing streak to the Sooners.In OU’s first CWS win last Saturday, freshmen Cord Rager was the star as he shut down Alabama.This time, OU coach Skip Johnson tabbed freshman Nick Wesloski, and he was up to the challenge despite his lack of starting experience this season.Wesloski’s only other start on the college level was two weeks ago in the Atlanta Regional against The Citadel, when he threw 105 pitches over seven innings and gave up five runs on six hits and a pair of walks — and picked up his first collegiate win. That game also started OU's current winning streak, which has now reached eight in a row.Before that, he was one of several spot relievers in Johnson’s bullpen. Staked to a four-run lead early, Wesloski was able to relax, settle in early and find the strike zone without much trouble.Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news.Jason Walk enjoyed his first career two-home run game, Dasan Harris had his second, and Trey Gambill homered as well, his 11th. Walk and Harris both had hit just four home runs all season, but they lived beyond the wall against Georgia’s pitching.Walk’s solo shot to straightaway center gave Oklahoma a 1-0 lead in the top of the third.The Sooners then flashed their blue ribbon defense in the bottom of the third.First baseman Dayton Tockey knocked down a hot shot by leadoff hitter Tre Phelps, and as Tockey stooped to gather the ball, Wesloski shouted, “You got time!” Tockey coolly picked up the ball and tossed to Wesloski covering the bag for the second out.The next play might be one that goes into Sooner lore, however.Hot-hitting Georgia slugger Daniel Jackson crushed a pitch just inside the chalk line over third base, but Camden Johnson ranged over, left his feet and snagged it on a hop. He whirled and stood up — in foul territory — and uncorked a one-hop laser to Tockey. Tockey was ready, the bottom of his cleat touching the side of the bag, his knees bent, and his glove in position to cradle the ricochet. That ended the inning, piled all the momentum into the OU dugout and set up a Sooner explosion in the fourth.Gambill hit a 2-1 pitch from Paul Farley into the Georgia bullpen in right field to put Oklahoma up 2-0, and after Brendan Brock singled and advanced on a balk, Harris charged up the crowd even more with some long-ball heroics of his own.Harris belted his fifth home run of the season deep into the seats in right center field, pushing the OU lead to 4-0.Georgia’s offense finally found a crack against Wesloski in the fifth inning.Kolby Branch dropped a bloop double in front of Walk in left-center field, and Ryan Black slapped a single to right to bring home Branch and cut the lead to 4-1.The Sooners got that run back in the sixth — without even one home run. In fact, they utilized a little small ball to make it 5-1.Gambill led off with a single up the middle, stole second base and then took third when Brock flied out to deep left-center. Harris then hit a high chopper to second base and nearly beat it, but was thrown out as Gambill scooted home with Oklahoma’s fifth run.In the bottom of the sixth. Harris turned in a couple of defensive gems in right field: he hustled into the corner to field a hot shot by Brennan Hudson and got it in quickly to keep Hudson at first base. Then he raced back and made a leaping, backhanded catch on the warning track, landing at the base of the wall to rob Kenny Ishikawa.Wesloski went 5 2/3 innings, struck out four, walked one and hit a batter, and gave up just one run and three in all. He threw 90 pitches before giving way to LJ Mercurius with two out in the sixth.Mercurius had a rocky beginning, though.Tockey’s error at first base loaded the bases, and Mercurius walked the Bulldogs’ 8- and 9-hole hitters to force in two runs and cut the OU lead to 5-3.Knowing how lethal the Georgia lineup can be — the Bulldogs lead the nation with 178 home runs and rank in the top four in most other major offensive categories — the buzz OU created had dissipated.That didn’t last long, however, as Jaxon Willits delivered an RBI double in the seventh and then Harris and Walk hit opposite field home runs in a three-run eighth that built the Sooner lead to 9-3.That was Oklahoma’s 60th home run in its last 31 games, and set a new school record for home runs in a postseason with 25 (in 10 games; the 2022 team held the previous mark at 22). OU’s season total of 90 is the most by a Sooner squad since 2010, when Sunny Golloway took OU back to the CWS with a team that bashed 105 dingers. From there, the Sooners’ inevitable victory march didn’t slow down. In the ninth, LaChance opened with an infield single, Willits added another double into the left field corner, and Gambill sent them both home with a two run double to right field that gave OU an 11-3 lead.Kolby Branch hit his 20th home run of the season to lead off the bottom of the ninth.Oklahoma has been in this situation (sort of) three other times — 1951, 1994 and 2022 — and won two national championships, with the ’22 squad dropping two straight to Ole Miss in the finals. Before 2003, the CWS bracket winners played just one winner-take-all game for the title.Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow