OMAHA, Neb. – Daniel Turpen allowed five hits over eight innings and defending champion Oregon State beat UC Irvine 7-1 in the College World Series on Wednesday night, ending the Anteaters’ dramatic postseason run.

The win sends the Beavers (47-18) into the best-of-three championship series starting Saturday. They will play the winner of Thursday’s Rice-North Carolina game for the title.

Turpen (10-1) turned in the third straight strong performance by an Oregon State starter, not allowing a hit after the fourth inning. Joe Paterson pitched a perfect ninth.

The route to the championship series was much smoother this year. In 2006, the Beavers lost their CWS opener to Miami 11-1, then staved off elimination for four straight games to reach the finals.

North Carolina 6, Rice 1

OMAHA, Neb. – Robert Woodard and two relievers limited Rice to six singles and a double, Dustin Ackley broke open the game with a three-run homer and North Carolina beat the Owls 6-1 in the College World Series on Wednesday.

The Tar Heels (56-14), the 2006 CWS runners-up and No. 3 national seed, forced another game against No. 2 Rice (56-13) Thursday. The winner meets UC Irvine or defending national champion Oregon State in the best-of-three championship starting Saturday.

Ackley, one of the nation’s top freshmen, broke out of a 5-for-37 slump with a fifth-inning single for his school-record 113th hit of the season.

In the seventh, Ackley lined a pitch from Chris Kelley over the right-field fence for his eighth homer and first since May 11.

It was only the Tar Heels’ second homer in 15 games.

Rice beat North Carolina 14-4 on Sunday and scored 29 runs in its first two CWS games. But like last year, after the Owls won their first two games here, their offense struggled. Rice was knocked out then after getting shut out twice by Oregon State.

Rice managed only two hits through six innings Wednesday and didn’t score until the seventh.