Rice's rally foiled as NC State takes Game 1 of Super Regional; Oklahoma clobbered

RALEIGH, N.C. — Jake Fincher’s two-out RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning capped a rally and lifted North Carolina State to a 4-3 victory over Rice on Saturday in Game 1 of their best-of-3 super regional. Rice (44-19) had taken a 3-2 lead in the top of the ninth, but N.C. State (48-14) tied it when Brett Williams slid under a tag after a bunt by Logan Ratledge. Williams singled to start the inning, stole second, and went to third on an error by pitcher Zech Lemond. Two batters later, Fincher’s single to left scored Jake Armstrong with the winning run. “This team is pretty gritty,” N.C. State coach Elliott Avent said. “This team is pretty tough. I’d pay money to come watch this...