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Vanderbilt beats Louisville 5-3 in its CWS opener

By WTOP Staff

ERIC OLSON
AP Sports Writer

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Vanderbilt was happy to get runs any way it could against Louisville.

The Commodores scored their first one on a wild pitch and their last one on a passed ball in a 5-3 victory in the College World Series on Saturday night.

“Any momentum swing in this tournament is a big deal, and runs are tough to come by,” Vanderbilt coach Tim Corbin said. “We were fortunate in a lot of ways tonight.”

The Commodores (46-19) won a grinding, 3-hour, 40-minute game to advance to a meeting with UC Irvine on Monday night. Louisville (50-16) will play Texas in an elimination game in the afternoon.

Dansby Swanson doubled in two runs, and Bryan Reynolds tripled in another and made a fabulous catch in left field to help the Commodores beat Louisville for the first time in four tries.

Carson Fulmer (7-1), who got the start instead of first-round draft pick Tyler Beede, worked six innings for the win. Adam Ravenelle retired seven of the last eight Louisville batters for his first save.

“He was very valuable tonight,” Corbin said. “He had a good heartbeat for the game.”

Louisville pitchers struggled against Vanderbilt’s patient batters. Losing pitcher Kyle Funkhouser (13-3) went six innings and issued six of Louisville’s nine walks, its third-most of the season. The four runs he allowed matched his career high.

“It’s hard to win at the College World Series with a bad start,” Funkhouser said, “and that’s what that was tonight.”

The Commodores’ biggest run came on a passed ball after they saw their 4-0 lead shrink to 4-3 in the seventh. It looked like catcher Kyle Gibson was setting up for a pitch-out, but reliever Kyle McGrath pitched to the plate and Gibson let the ball get past him, allowing Vince Conde to score.

Sutton Whiting, who drove in Louisville’s first run, said he the Cardinals must forget the loss quickly.

“It’s over with, and we’ve got to bounce back,” he said. “Come with a good practice tomorrow and get back to work and face a good team in Texas Monday.”

Louisville, the only returning team from the 2013 CWS, swept the Commodores in super regionals last year and beat them again last month.

John Norwood scored the first of Vanderbilt’s three runs in the second inning, coming home on Funkhouser’s bases-loaded wild pitch. Swanson followed with his two-run double into the left-center gap.

“We’ve done a good job the last quarter of the season getting deep into the counts, more walks, less strikeouts, and we’ve hit the ball,” Corbin said. “We’ve really hit the ball well the last three weeks. We hit it OK tonight, but we were facing a tough customer.”

The Commodores led 4-0 against Funkhouser after Reynolds tripled in Swanson in the fourth. Reynolds had made the catch of the day to end the Louisville second when he went to the left-field wall to haul in a drive off the bat of Omaha native Grant Kay.

The Cardinals pulled to 4-2 in the fifth when Whiting hit an RBI triple and scored on a groundout, and it was a one-run game in the seventh after Zach Lucas narrowly beat Norwood’s throw to the plate on Nick Solak’s hit to center.

The Cardinals went 0-2 at last year’s CWS, getting eliminated in an embarrassing 11-4 loss to Oregon State in which they committed four errors. They came to Omaha this week off five straight wins in the NCAA tournament.

Vanderbilt is at the CWS for the second time, and first since 2011.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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