Alabama one win away from College World Series after beating St. John’s

Alabama pitcher Tyler Fay at the Tuscaloosa Super Regional, Saturday, June 6, 2026 – Photo from the University of Alabama

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (WAKA) – Alabama grabbed an 8-0 win over St. John’s last night to put the Crimson Tide one win away from going to the College World Series for the first time since 1999.

Alabama (41-19), led by a stellar start from Tyler Fay beat St. John’s (36-25) to begin the NCAA Tuscaloosa Super Regional at Sewell-Thomas Stadium. The victory took place in front of a sold-out crowd, with a record-breaking 7,573 fans in the Super Regional opener.

Fay (11-4) threw for 7.1 scoreless innings while having been responsible for only two hits and three walks to go with nine strikeouts.

The Alabama lineup was paced by a variety of contributors, including Justin Lebron, who managed a 3-for-5 line with one double, two RBI, and a hit-by-pitch. Brennan Holt was 2-for-4, highlighted by a two-run double to open the scoring in the 2nd. Bryce Fowler’s lone hit was also a two-run double as part of a four-run Crimson Tide 4th inning. Brady Neal and Peyton Steele both recorded bases-loaded walks, while Eric Hines contributed a double as part of his 2-for-4 evening.

“Obviously, the story today is Tyler Fay,” head coach Rob Vaughn said.  “We looked up in about the fifth, and Mike Morrison looked at me and said, ‘Golly, I’m glad we made that trip to Nebraska to talk to him this summer to get him back.’ What a neat moment when he walked off the field. You have the crowd chanting your name, that’s something you dream about. And you had 7,500 people doing that tonight, so incredible job by him. Great job by the lineup, (Brennan Holt) had a great day today, (Justin Lebron), big-time day today, some really big swings. Just all in all, a really good team win, but I told these guys afterwards, in 2014 at Maryland, I was in this spot, we won game one of the Super, and then we lost the next two at Virginia, so the job’s not even close to being done.”

Alabama improved to 4-6 (.400) all-time in Super Regional contests as the result of Saturday’s victory.

Tyler Fay has now recorded 7.0-plus innings pitched in six of his 17 outings this season. Fay now owns 121 strikeouts this season, the second-most in a single season in program history, trailing only Wade LeBlanc’s 128 strikeouts in 2006.

Alabama will look to clinch a berth in the 2026 Men’s College World Series when the NCAA Tuscaloosa Super Regional continues today. First pitch between the Crimson Tide and Red Storm has been re-scheduled for 3PM CDT due to weather, airing on ESPN2.

— Information from University of Alabama Athletics